This is the Saint Louis Science Center’s NIGHT SKY UPDATE for the week of Tuesday, November 10, 2026
Information updated weekly or as needed.
Times given as local St. Louis time this week will be in Central Standard Time (CST). For definitions of terminology used in the night sky update, click the highlighted text. If relying on times posted in Universal Time (UT), St. Louis is -6 hours when CST. Times posted in the Night Sky Update are in the 24-hour format.
Join us for our next star party, Friday, December 4, 2026, held in association with the St. Louis Astronomical Society. For details, see the information at the bottom of this page or visit https://www.slsc.org/explore/mcdonnell-planetarium/public-telescope-viewings/
Observing Highlight
Later this year Jupiter reaches an equinox on December 16, 2026. When Jupiter is near an equinox, mutual event season begins for the planet’s Galilean moons. Mutual events occur when natural satellites align, visually interacting with one another from the perspective of an observer. Natural satellites are any natural object orbiting something. Planets, dwarf planets and moons are examples of natural satellites.
Mutual events can be an eclipse, occultation or transit. A common example of this are shadow transits on Jupiter. When one of the Galilean moons passes between Jupiter and the Sun, it will cast its shadow onto the cloud tops of Jupiter. We see this as a small dark circle transiting across Jupiter.
Jupiter takes about 12 years to orbit the Sun. Because of this, the planet reaches an equinox roughly every six years. When near a Jovian equinox, it is possible to see mutual events involving two of the Galilean moons. When these occur, they will be either an eclipse or occultation. The Galilean moons are Jupiter’s largest moons which are named Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. They were discovered by Galileo in 1610 and can be found today with binoculars.
When viewed through a small telescope a viewer can observe two of the moons approach one another appearing to temporarily merge. However, to resolve the event as an eclipse or occultation, the British Astronomical Association states that a telescope with an aperture of 12 inches or larger is required.
There are several mutual events that will be visible throughout November and December with two occurring this week. On November 14, 2026, Europa will partially occult Ganymede at 01:51 CST. A few days later, on November 16, 2026, Io will partially eclipse Callisto starting at 01:47 CST. You can find a more complete list of these events in a post on the Cloudy Night forums here.
It is also worth noting that there are numerous double shadow transits in December 2026 that are easy targets for moderate telescopes. You can find these dates by using Sky and Telescope’s online tool for Jupiter’s moons.
T CrB Nova Update 11/10/2026
If you are still interested in seeing the recurrent nova T Coronae Borealis, there is still hope. The nova has not yet occurred meaning we are in a waiting game. If you are still interested, the part of the sky the nova will appear in is found low in the west by 17:30. Unfortunately time is short for evening views of this part of the sky. However, by December, the area will become visible again by 05:30.
The star system T Coronae Borealis is found in the constellation Corona Borealis which looks like a small U-shape of stars next to the constellation Boötes. Once it is dark the location of T CrB will still be in the west. If you cannot observe the sky directly, you can track the behavior of T CrB by checking current magnitude estimates posted at The Sky Live. Current magnitude estimates of the system show it at 10th magnitude.
The Sun and Moon
Sun
Sunrise on Tuesday, November 10 is at 6:37 and sunset is at 16:51 providing between 10.23 hours of daylight. Even after sunset, light from the Sun will dimly illuminate our sky for about 1 hour and 30 minutes. This period is called twilight, which ends around 18:23 this week. For those with a sundial, local noon occurs around 11:45 on November 10, 2026.
| Day | Sunrise (CST) | Sunset (CST) |
| 10-Nov | 6:37 | 16:51 |
| 11-Nov | 6:38 | 16:51 |
| 12-Nov | 6:40 | 16:50 |
| 13-Nov | 6:41 | 16:49 |
| 14-Nov | 6:42 | 16:48 |
| 15-Nov | 6:43 | 16:47 |
| 16-Nov | 6:44 | 16:47 |
| 17-Nov | 6:45 | 16:46 |
| 18-Nov | 6:46 | 16:45 |
| 19-Nov | 6:47 | 16:45 |
| 20-Nov | 6:48 | 16:44 |
Moon
Moonrise for Tuesday, November 10, is at 08:11 and moonset occurs at 17:26. On November 10, 2026, the Moon will exhibit a waning crescent phase with 2% disk illumination. By November 20, 2026, the Moon will exhibit a waxing gibbous phase with 81% disk illumination. First quarter moon occurs on November 17, 2026, at 05:48.
International Space Station (ISS) Observing
Visible passes of ISS from St. Louis for the week of November 10 occur in evening hours. The best passes occur on November 10, 12 and 13. Information for these passes and others can be found here. If you do not live in the area, you can use https://heavens-above.com/ to set your viewing location and get times for where you are.
Visible Planets
Four naked eye planets will be visible this week. Saturn rises in the east before sunset. Mars and Jupiter are visible in east after 1 am. Venus will be visible in the east around 05:45
Venus
A new morning apparition has begun for Venus. If you have clear views to the east Venus rises around 04:39 this week. The planet will start clearing tree lines by 05:30. The disk of Venus will be illuminated between 10% and 18.5% as the week progresses. You only need binoculars to watch the phase change of Venus as it climbs out of the glare of the Sun this month.
Mars
Mars rises around 23:30 this week becoming easy to find by 00:30. This apparition of Mars is not the best as it is an aphelic apparition. ALPO’s guide for the Mars 2026-2027 aphelic apparition indicates the apparition started on October 14, 2026. Mars reaches opposition on February 19, 2027.
Jupiter
Jupiter rises this week around 23:44. You will need to wait for the giant world to clear trees, but it should be easy to see in the east by 00:45.
Saturn
Saturn now rises in the east before sunset. Once it clears trees and buildings in your area, Saturn will be an easy target for naked eye views. Saturn remains a good target until spring 2027 as it approaches superior conjunction on April 7, 2027.
Uranus
Uranus is technically bright enough to be seen naked eye under dark conditions. However, most will likely still need binoculars to spot the planet. Uranus will remain very easy to find for several years as it passes through the constellation Taurus. The smallest binocular I have used to spot Uranus is a 10×28 binocular. At magnitude 5.7, Uranus was very easy to find with this instrument. Uranus rises around 17:38 this week but should be easy to find by 19:30. The ice giant can be found in Taurus between the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters.
Our next Star Party will be held on Friday, December 4, 2026 from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm.
On the first Friday of each month, the St. Louis Astronomical Society and the Saint Louis Science Center will set up a number of telescopes outdoors and be on hand to answer your questions. Telescope viewing begins once it is dark.
The St. Louis Astronomical Society helps host the monthly Star Parties at the Saint Louis Science Center. In addition to our nighttime viewings, they also help facilitate our daytime event called Solar Sundays. These daytime viewing sessions occur on the 3rd Sunday each month. Visit SLAS’s website linked above to learn about other telescope events SLAS hosts around the St. Louis area.
James S. McDonnell Planetarium
Night Sky Update for November 10, 2026
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