October 31, 2026: Halloween’s Moon is 65% illuminated near Pollux before sunrise. Find Jupiter, Mars, and Venus in the morning sky and Saturn after sunset.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 7:22 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 5:46 p.m. CDT. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times.
Halloween Imagery
Black cats! Flying witches! Jack-o-lanterns! Ghosts! Haunted mansions! And a Full moon! All are parts of modern Halloween imagery. This Halloween has no Full moon, but the moon is nearly at the morning half phase, or Last Quarter.
A Halloween Full moon occurs about every 19 years. The moon’s cycle of phases recurs on the same date in that time interval. The last Halloween Full Moon occurred in 2020, followed by the next one in 2039.
This Halloween Moon
This morning the moon, 65% illuminated, is over 70° above the west-southwest horizon, 5.4° to the lower right of Pollux, a Gemini Twin. The lunar orb is over 40° above Sirius, the night’s brightest star, although Jupiter in the southeast is brighter.
Tonight, the moon rises at least five hours after sunset, long after those little goblins have completed their trick-or-treat rounds and are snuggly in their beds with sugar highs.
Jupiter, Mars, Regulus Before Sunrise
Before sunrise, bright Jupiter is over halfway from the southeast horizon to overhead and over 30° to the moon’s lower left. It slowly rambles eastward in front of Leo, 5.9° to Regulus’ upper right, the Lion’s brightest star.
Mars marches across the Leo border today, 6.0° to Jupiter’s right. Notice that the Red Planet, Jupiter, and Regulus are nearly equally spaced. Mars overtakes and passes Jupiter on November 16 and Regulus on November 26.
Early View of Venus
Venus is re-entering the predawn sky in the east-southeast. Venus aficionados can find the planet about 3° above the horizon 30 minutes before sunrise. The planet rises earlier each morning.
Saturn After Sunset
Saturn is well-placed after sunset for telescopic inspection. One hour after sundown, the Ringed Wonder is over 20° above the east-southeast horizon. As twilight ends, the planet is higher in the sky, where the rings and muted cloud bands are visible. Saturn is south nearly two hours before local midnight, setting in the west 2.5 hours before sunrise.
Before sunrise, look for the Halloween moon near Pollux. Jupiter and Mars are to the moon’s lower left, and Venus is low in the east-southeast during bright morning twilight. Saturn, the solar system’s crown jewel, is in the east-southeast after sunset.
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