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APOD
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
Lunar Occultation of Mercury
Explanation: Fans of the western sky after sunset have lately enjoyed this month's remarkable array of bright planets. Witnessed from some locations, on February 18 planet Mercury even appeared to slide behind the Moon, an event known as a lunar occultation. These two snapshots, taken in early evening skies show before and after telescopic views of the rare disappearance of innermost planet behind young Moon. The top panel finds bright Mercury just visible at the northern (right) edge of the earthshine-illuminated lunar disk. In the bottom panel the bright planet has emerged in darker skies beyond the Moon's sunlit crescent. As seen south of Sallisaw, Oklahoma, planet Earth, this lunar occultation of Mercury lasted only about 3 minutes ( video ). But you can still check out a parade of planets tonight .
March 3: Total Lunar Eclipse
| Date | February 28, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Image Credit & Copyright: Fabrizio Melandri |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |