Some astronomical events in February 2026

I was trying to post this by February 23rd, but there were some technical and other problems.  The waxing crescent (?) Moon (in Taurus) was still up towards February 24th, though getting low and yellow.  Even though the trees in between were mostly oaks and bare I couldn't see many stars that low in the west from here (but one morning a few weeks ago I could see gleaming Jupiter sinking into a distant loblolly pine woods just before the Sun came up).  I'm not sure that it was actually that cold, but there was a breeze (continuing today).  There were strong gusts after dark on the 22nd and it has been windy for a few days since a nor'easter/snowstorm that ended about a week of mild temperatures here (it wasn't a storm here, apart from the wind and some rain a few days ago, though there might have been snow in the mountains of WNC and what WRAL termed "novelty snow" in northeastern NC or along the border with Virginia and I might have heard thunder early one morning, maybe on the 22nd).

Some other events are listed at:  durhamspark.blogspot.com/2026/02/an-update-for-week-8-of-2026-history-of.html  

Imbolg or Imbolc and Saint Brigid's Day or Lá Fhéile Bríde (Irish), Là Fhèill Brìghde (Scottish Gaelic), Laa'l Breeshey (Manx) are February 1st.  "Imbolc/St Brigid's Day" has been an annual public holiday in Ireland since 2023:  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imbolc 

Candlemas is February 2nd:  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candlemas  

Around 6:45pm on the 2nd the Moon occulted the star Regulus over much of the USA and Canada, part of a July 2025-Deember 27, 2026 series, but this is the only one visible from much of the Americas; the next series will begin in June 2035.  I saw the star near the Moon early on the 3rd, but I don't remember now if they were visible here earlier.

Venus and Mercury were "evening stars" by February 2nd.

Japan's Setsubun ( 節分 ) was February 2nd:  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setsubun

立春 (Lichun in Chinese, Risshun in Japanese, Ipchun in Korean, and Lập Xuân) began February 3rd and ended February 18th in 2026:  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lichun 

The East Asian Lunar New Year is February 17th, a Fire Horse year: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year , en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horse_(zodiac) , and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_Horse  The Horse is associated with South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Mongolia, Romania, and Colombia!  In the West, the winter sign Capricorn was traditionally associated with the regions of France, Germany and Spain, according to R.H. Allen's book Star Names, (from Manilius), later adding Brandenburg, Greece, India, Macedonia, Mecklenburg, Mexico, Oxford, Saxony, Thrace, and Wilna.  Lucius Ampelius "associated it with the burning south wind Auster."  

Japan combines the Lunar New Year with the Western Gregorian New Year so drawings celebrating the Year of the Horse were released about two months ago.  For current Christmas and Lunar New Year cards see:

Note that while the ANN website is basically inoffensive, SK could be morally and politically offensive, but the cards and images themselves probably aren't especially offensive, though I have not checked everything:

Christmas illustrations, Part VIII:  www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2025-12-26/merry-christmas-from-around-the-anime-world-part-viii/.232538

Lunar New Year illustrations, Part XI:  www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2026-01-03/happy-new-year-from-around-the-anime-world-hold-your-horses-part-xi/.232724

Christmas illustrations:  SK /2025/12/26/anime-accounts-creators-spreading-christmas-cheer/

Anime Christmas in the West:  SK /2025/12/26/westerners-revel-in-christmas-energy-with-anime-girl-shrines/

China is discouraging Christmas celebrations this year?? – SK /2025/12/25/china-discouraging-christmas-celebrations-in-some-schools/

Or search on X.

On the Year of the Horse, 2026:  www.nippon.com/en/japan-data/h02544/the-year-of-the-horse-galloping-into-2026.html

On the previous Fire Horse year, 1966:  www.nippon.com/en/japan-topics/g02550/the-year-of-the-fire-horse-why-did-births-plummet-in-japan-in-1966.html

On the Eto:  www.nippon.com/en/features/jg00110/eto.html

On Shougatu, January 1st:  www.nippon.com/en/features/jg00070/

"Hokkaido's Vanishing Paradise:  The Wild Horses of Yururi Island" – www.nippon.com/en/images/i00081/

There was an annular solar eclipse near the South Pole (but including Madagascar, etc.) February 17th.

ytliu.epizy.com/eclipse/one_solar_eclipse_general.html

The Tibetan New Year or Losar ( ལོ་གསར ) began February 18th this year (and it is a Male Fire Horse year):  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Losar

A waxing crescent Moon occluded Mercury February 18th, as seen from Arizona to Georgia:  lunar-occultations.com  It was partially visible from the Southern Hemisphere.

The traditional Pisces period begins around February 19th (though the Sun is actually 'in' the constellation Aquarius around February 17th-March 13th and 'in' Pisces around March 13th-April 19th.  R.H. Allen on the constellation:  penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Topics/astronomy/_Texts/secondary/ALLSTA/Pisces*.html

There was a basically invisible conjunction of very slow-moving Saturn and Neptune February 20th, something that happens at intervals of 36 years?  The two very far off planets have been in the same area of the sky for quite a while.  Mentioned here:  troubledminds.substack.com/p/alien-theology-and-the-2026-moment

The Moon was again close to the Pleiades (M45) in Taurus the evening of February 23rd and could be seen to occlude some of them from regions far to the north of here (see the beginning).

The asteroid Iris ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_Iris ) will be at opposition February 27th (at 1pm EST).

The waxing Moon, Jupiter, Castor, and Pollux will be lined up in Gemini all day on February 27th.  

I had been trying to post some of these posts in one post near the beginning of July in 2025, on the equinox that September, earlier in October, in October, at the beginning of November, in November, earlier in December, before 2026, around New Year's Day, before January 15th, before the 20th, by the 24th...  Much more to come (hopefully).  It can be hard and there have been technical and personal problems in editing.