Astronomy Calendar 2021: When to See Full Moon, Planets, Eclipses and Meteor Showers

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There will be full moons, meteor showers, eclipses and planets visible in the morning and evening skies around the world in 2021.

The Quadrantid meteor shower on January 3 started the first 12 meteor showers in 2021.

The biggest obstacle to seeing meteor showers that are only visible from certain hemispheres – apart from your location – is the brightness of the moon. The fuller the moon, the harder it is to see meteors creeping into the sky.

There is a wait until the next meteor shower, the popular Lyrids in April. Lyrids will peak on April 22 and will be best seen in the northern hemisphere – but the moon will be 68% full, according to the American Meteorological Society.

Eta aquariums follow shortly, reaching their peak on May 5, when the moon is 38% full. This shower is best seen in the southern tropics, but will still produce an average shower for those north of the equator.

The Milky Way is seen from Glacier Point Trailside in Yosemite National Park, California.

Delta aquariums are also best seen in the southern tropics and will peak between July 28 and 29, when the moon is 74% full.

Interestingly, another meteor shower rises in the same night – Alpha Capricorns. Although this is a much weaker shower, it is known to produce some bright fireballs during the peak. And it will be visible to those on both sides of the equator.

The Perseid meteor shower, the most popular of the year, will peak between August 11 and 12 in the northern hemisphere, when the moon will be full of only 13%.

Here’s the meteor shower schedule for the rest of the year, according to EarthSky’s meteor shower outlook.
  • October 8: Draconides
  • October 21: Orionides
  • November 4-5: Southern Taurids
  • November 11-12: Northern Taurids
  • November 17: Leonides
  • December 13-14: Geminids
  • December 22: Urside

The full moon

Typically for a normal year, 2021 will have 12 full months. (Last year it had 13 full months, two of which were in October).

Here are all the full months that take place this year and their names, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac:
  • January 28 – Wolf Moon
  • February 27 – Snow Moon
  • March 28 – Worm Moon
  • April 26 – Pink Moon
  • May 26 – Moon with flowers
  • June 24 – Strawberry Moon
  • July 23 – Buck moon
  • August 22 – sturgeon month
  • September 20 – Harvest Month
  • October 20 – Hunter’s Moon
  • November 19 – Beaver Month
  • December 18 – Cold Moon

Solar and lunar eclipses

This year, there will be two solar eclipses and two lunar eclipses – and three of them will be visible to some in North America, according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac.

A total lunar eclipse will occur on May 26, best visible to those in western North America and Hawaii from 4:46 am ET to 9:51 AM ET.

A ring solar eclipse will occur on June 10, visible in northern and northeastern North America from 4:12 AM ET to 9:11 AM ET. The sun will not be completely blocked by the moon, so be sure to wear eclipse glasses to see this event safely.

A partial lunar eclipse will occur on November 19, and Skywatchers in North America and Hawaii will see it between 1:00 ET and 7:06 AM ET.

And the year ends with a total solar eclipse on December 4. It will not be seen in North America, but those in the Falkland Islands, the southern tip of Africa, Antarctica and southeastern Australia will be able to see it.

Visible planets

Skywatchers will have multiple opportunities to observe the planets in our skies on certain mornings and evenings throughout 2021, according to the planetary guide The Farmer’s Almanac.

You may see most of these with the naked eye, except for the distant Neptune, but the binoculars or telescope will provide the best view.

Mercury will look like a bright star in the morning sky between February 28 – March 20, June 27 – July 16 and October 18 – November 1. It will shine in the night sky between January 15 – January 31, May 3 – May 24, August 31 – September 21 and November 29 – December 31.

Venus, our closest neighbor to the solar system, will appear in the eastern sky in the mornings from January 1 to 23 and in the western sky at dusk on the evenings of May 24 to December 31. It is the second brightest object in our sky after the moon.

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Mars appears reddish in the morning sky between November 24 and December 31 and will be visible in the evening sky between January 1 and August 22.

Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, is the third brightest object in our sky. It will be on display in the morning sky between February 17 and August 19. Look for it in the evenings from 1 to 9 January and from 20 August to 31 December – but it will be at its brightest from 8 August to 2 September.

Saturn’s rings are visible only through a telescope, but the planet itself can be seen with the naked eye on the mornings of February 10 – August 1 and in the evenings from January 1 to January 6 and August 2 to December 31. the brightest between 1 and 4 August.

Binoculars or a telescope will help you observe the greenish glow of Uranus on the mornings of May 16 – November 3 and in the evenings of January 1 – April 12 and November 4 – December 31 – but at the brightest between August 28 and December 31.

And our most distant neighbor in the solar system, Neptune, will be visible through a telescope in the mornings of March 27 to September 13 and in the evenings of January 1 to February 23 and September 14 to December 31. It will be the brightest between July 19 and November 8.

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