The sky of Tokyo, Calendar, Planets (February, 2018)
The sky of Tokyo
Calendar (February)
| 2 | Occultation of Regulus（Part of the Tohoku region and East Japan） |
| 8 | Last Quarter Moon |
| 11 | National Foundation Day [Kenkoku-Kinen-no-hi] (national holiday) |
| 12 | Holiday |
| 16 | New Moon / Partial Solar Eclipse (not visible from Japan) (Reference: Local Prediction of the Solar Eclipse) |
| 17 | Mercury at superior conjunction |
| 23 | First Quarter Moon |
The days for the peak activities of the meteor showers are based on the predictions of IMO（International Meteor Organization).
Planets
- Mercury
- Mercury reaches superior conjunction on February 17. Its apparent location is close to the Sun, so it is not suited for observation.
- Venus
- Venus shines in the lower western sky just after sunset, but its apparent location is close to the Sun, making observations difficult.
- Mars
- At the beginning of the month, Mars is located in the constellation Scorpius and moves east (direct motion). In the middle of the month, it moves to the constellation Ophiuchus. It can be seen in the southern sky before sunrise. Its brightness is 1.2 magnitude to 0.8 magnitude.
- Jupiter
- Jupiter moves east (direct motion) in the constellation Libra. Seen from Tokyo, it rises around midnight and can be seen in the southern sky before sunrise. Its brightness is - 2.0 magnitude to -2.2 magnitude.
- Saturn
- Saturn moves east (direct motion) in the constellation Sagittarius. It can be seen in the southeastern sky before sunrise. Its brightness is 0.6 magnitude.
Reference: Ephemeris Computation Office, NAOJ
With the “Sky Viewer” you can easily explore the appearance of a typical urban night sky (planets and constellations are visible). The Celestial Phenomena section of the glossary explains the planetary phenomena terms: greatest elongation, opposition, conjunction, stationary, etc.