Space Time
Planet oppositions, 2026–2027
At opposition, an outer planet is near its brightest and stays up through most of the night. Here are the upcoming dates calculated from ephemeris data.
Coming up
| Planet | Opposition | Peak mag | Disc | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturn | October 5, 2026 | 0.2 | 19.7″ | 8.43 AU | details → |
| Jupiter | February 11, 2027 | -2.6 | 45.2″ | 4.36 AU | details → |
| Mars | February 20, 2027 | -1.2 | 13.8″ | 0.68 AU | details → |
Why oppositions matter
Opposition occurs when Earth passes between an outer planet and the Sun. The planet is fully lit from our viewpoint and usually near its closest distance for the year. Mars changes most noticeably, while Jupiter and Saturn also get brighter and remain visible longer.
Watch any of them in 3D
Space Time is a free 3D universe explorer in your browser. Jump the clock to any opposition and watch it happen, or graph the whole apparition with the built-in ephemeris generator and export the data as CSV. Open the app. Also: the August 2026 total solar eclipse and the Moon phase calendar.