2016Calendar of Astronomical Events

    
2016Phases of the Moon
Mountain Standard Time
The following table gives the date and time of the Moon's phases for the year. The times listed are for Mountain Standard Time(Greenwich Mean Time - 7 hours).If Daylight Saving Time is in effect, add one hour to the times listed. 
   
      2016 Phases of the Moon   
      Mountain Standard Time
 New Moon  First Quarter  Full Moon  Last Quarter 
--- Jan  1  22:30   
 Jan  9  18:30    Jan 16  16:26    Jan 23  18:46    Jan 31  20:28   
 Feb  8  07:39    Feb 15  00:46    Feb 22  11:20    Mar  1  16:11   
 Mar  8  18:54 T  Mar 15  10:03    Mar 23  05:01 n  Mar 31  08:17   
 Apr  7  04:24    Apr 13  20:59    Apr 21  22:24    Apr 29  20:29   
 May  6  12:30    May 13  10:02    May 21  14:15    May 29  05:12   
 Jun  4  20:00    Jun 12  01:10    Jun 20  04:02    Jun 27  11:19   
 Jul  4  04:01    Jul 11  17:52    Jul 19  15:57    Jul 26  16:00   
 Aug  2  13:45    Aug 10  11:21    Aug 18  02:27    Aug 24  20:41   
 Sep  1  02:03 A  Sep  9  04:49    Sep 16  12:05 n  Sep 23  02:56   
 Sep 30  17:12    Oct  8  21:33    Oct 15  21:23    Oct 22  12:14   
 Oct 30  10:38    Nov  7  12:51    Nov 14  06:52    Nov 21  01:33   
 Nov 29  05:18    Dec  7  02:03    Dec 13  17:06    Dec 20  18:56   
 Dec 28  23:53   ---
An eclipse of the Sun can only occur at New Moon (see: Solar Eclipses for Beginners), while an eclipse of the Moon can only occur at Full Moon (see: Lunar Eclipses for Beginners). In any calendar year there are a minimum of two solar and two lunar eclipses.
If an eclipse of the Sun or Moon takes place on a given date, it is noted by a character next to the date in the table above. Solar eclipses are indicated as: T=Total, A=Annular, H=Hybrid and P=Partial.Lunar eclipses are indicated as: t=Total, p=Partial, and n=Penumbral. 
Phases of the Moon Photo Gallery is an image collection showing the Moon's phases over a complete synodic month.
2016Calendar of Astronomical Events
Mountain Standard Time
The following table gives the date and time of the important astronomical events for the year. The times listed are for Mountain Standard Time(Greenwich Mean Time - 7 hours).If Daylight Saving Time is in effect, add one hour to the times listed. A key to astronomical terms appears below the calendar.
   
      2016Calendar of Astronomical Events   
   Mountain Standard Time  
 January - June   July - December 
Date     MST   Event        (h:m)Jan 01  22:30  LAST QUARTER MOON     02  04:53  Moon at Apogee: 404279 km    02  16     Earth at Perihelion: 0.98330 AU    02  20:35  Spica 4.7°S of Moon    03  11:45  Mars 1.5°S of Moon    04  01     Quadrantid Meteor Shower    06  16:57  Venus 3.1°S of Moon    06  21:57  Saturn 3.3°S of Moon    07  04:34  Venus 6.3°N of Antares    08  11     Mercury at Perihelion     09  01     Venus 0.1°N of Saturn    09  18:30  NEW MOON     14  07     Mercury at Inferior Conjunction     14  08:48  Moon at Descending Node     14  19:10  Moon at Perigee: 369619 km    16  16:26  FIRST QUARTER MOON     19  19:16  Aldebaran 0.5°S of Moon    23  18:46  FULL MOON     25  22:10  Regulus 2.5°N of Moon    27  16:58  Moon at Ascending Node     27  18:14  Jupiter 1.4°N of Moon    30  02:10  Moon at Apogee: 404553 km    30  04:35  Spica 5.0°S of Moon    31  20:28  LAST QUARTER MOON Feb 01  01:48  Mars 2.7°S of Moon    03  12:05  Saturn 3.5°S of Moon    06  00:32  Venus 4.3°S of Moon    06  09:47  Mercury 3.8°S of Moon    06  18     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 25.6°W    08  07:39  NEW MOON     10  13:46  Moon at Descending Node     10  19:42  Moon at Perigee: 364358 km    12  20     Mercury 4.0°N of Venus    15  00:46  FIRST QUARTER MOON     16  00:41  Aldebaran 0.3°S of Moon    21  10     Mercury at Aphelion     22  05:48  Regulus 2.5°N of Moon    22  11:20  FULL MOON     23  20:58  Jupiter 1.7°N of Moon    23  23:10  Moon at Ascending Node     26  12:05  Spica 5.1°S of Moon    26  20:28  Moon at Apogee: 405383 km    28  08     Neptune in Conjunction with Sun     29  11:16  Mars 3.6°S of MoonMar 01  16:11  LAST QUARTER MOON     01  23:53  Saturn 3.6°S of Moon    07  03:54  Venus 3.5°S of Moon    08  03     Jupiter at Opposition     08  18:54  NEW MOON     08  18:57  Total Solar Eclipse; mag=1.045    08  23:31  Moon at Descending Node     10  00:02  Moon at Perigee: 359509 km    14  06:44  Aldebaran 0.3°S of Moon    15  10:03  FIRST QUARTER MOON     19  21:31  Vernal Equinox     20  07     Venus at Aphelion     20  12:05  Regulus 2.5°N of Moon    21  20:57  Jupiter 2.1°N of Moon    22  05:59  Moon at Ascending Node     23  04:47  Pen. Lunar Eclipse; mag=0.775    23  05:01  FULL MOON     23  13     Mercury at Superior Conjunction     24  18:50  Spica 5.1°S of Moon    25  07:16  Moon at Apogee: 406125 km    28  11:45  Mars 4.2°S of Moon    29  07:58  Saturn 3.5°S of Moon    31  08:17  LAST QUARTER MOON Apr 05  10     Mercury at Perihelion     05  10:27  Moon at Descending Node     06  01:30  Venus 0.7°S of Moon: Occn.    07  04:24  NEW MOON     07  10:36  Moon at Perigee: 357164 km    08  03:35  Mercury 5.2°N of Moon    09  14     Uranus in Conjunction with Sun     10  15:05  Aldebaran 0.4°S of Moon    13  20:59  FIRST QUARTER MOON     16  17:46  Regulus 2.5°N of Moon    17  21:42  Jupiter 2.2°N of Moon    18  07     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 19.9°E    18  11:04  Moon at Ascending Node     21  00:59  Spica 5.1°S of Moon    21  09:05  Moon at Apogee: 406352 km    21  22:24  FULL MOON     21  22     Lyrid Meteor Shower    24  21:13  Mars 4.9°S of Moon    25  12:28  Saturn 3.3°S of Moon    27  06:51  Mars 4.8°N of Antares    28  01:14  Mercury 3.0°S of Pleiades    29  20:29  LAST QUARTER MOON May 02  18:27  Moon at Descending Node     04  12     Eta-Aquarid Meteor Shower    05  21:14  Moon at Perigee: 357828 km    06  12:30  NEW MOON     08  01:21  Aldebaran 0.5°S of Moon    09  08     Mercury at Inferior Conjunction     13  10:02  FIRST QUARTER MOON     14  00:06  Regulus 2.3°N of Moon    15  02:30  Jupiter 2.0°N of Moon    15  13:39  Moon at Ascending Node     18  07:07  Spica 5.1°S of Moon    18  15:06  Moon at Apogee: 405934 km    21  14:15  FULL MOON     22  04     Mars at Opposition     22  14:59  Saturn 3.2°S of Moon    29  05:12  LAST QUARTER MOON     29  21:45  Moon at Descending Node Jun 02  23     Saturn at Opposition     03  02:47  Mercury 0.7°N of Moon: Occn.    03  03:55  Moon at Perigee: 361142 km    04  20:00  NEW MOON     05  02     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 24.2°W    06  15     Venus at Superior Conjunction     10  07:47  Regulus 2.0°N of Moon    11  12:35  Jupiter 1.5°N of Moon    11  15:20  Moon at Ascending Node     12  01:10  FIRST QUARTER MOON     13  03:06  Mercury 6.4°S of Pleiades    14  13:47  Spica 5.3°S of Moon    15  05:00  Moon at Apogee: 405022 km    18  17:40  Saturn 3.3°S of Moon    18  20:39  Mercury 3.7°N of Aldebaran    20  04:02  FULL MOON     20  15:35  Summer Solstice     25  22:28  Moon at Descending Node     27  11:19  LAST QUARTER MOON     30  23:45  Moon at Perigee: 365983 km
Date     MST   Event        (h:m)Jul 01  20:58  Aldebaran 0.4°S of Moon    02  09     Mercury at Perihelion     04  04:01  NEW MOON     04  09     Earth at Aphelion: 1.01675 AU    06  20     Mercury at Superior Conjunction     07  16:33  Regulus 1.8°N of Moon    08  18:41  Moon at Ascending Node     09  03:08  Jupiter 0.9°N of Moon: Occn.    10  16     Venus at Perihelion     11  17:52  FIRST QUARTER MOON     11  21:13  Spica 5.6°S of Moon    12  22:24  Moon at Apogee: 404272 km    15  22:11  Saturn 3.4°S of Moon    16  16     Mercury 0.5°N of Venus    19  15:57  FULL MOON     23  00:49  Moon at Descending Node     26  16:00  LAST QUARTER MOON     27  04:25  Moon at Perigee: 369659 km    27  14     Delta-Aquarid Meteor Shower    29  03:53  Aldebaran 0.3°S of Moon    30  08:55  Mercury 0.3°N of RegulusAug 02  13:45  NEW MOON     03  23:19  Venus 2.9°N of Moon    04  15:12  Mercury 0.6°N of Moon: Occn.    05  00:48  Moon at Ascending Node     05  04:57  Venus 1.0°N of Regulus    05  20:28  Jupiter 0.2°N of Moon: Occn.    08  05:08  Spica 5.8°S of Moon    09  17:05  Moon at Apogee: 404266 km    10  11:21  FIRST QUARTER MOON     12  05:10  Saturn 3.7°S of Moon    12  05     Perseid Meteor Shower    15  09     Mercury at Aphelion     16  14     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 27.4°E    18  02:27  FULL MOON     19  07:14  Moon at Descending Node     19  23     Mercury 3.8°S of Jupiter    21  18:20  Moon at Perigee: 367047 km    23  22:09  Mars 1.8°N of Antares    24  18     Mars 4.3°S of Saturn    24  20:41  LAST QUARTER MOON     25  09:21  Aldebaran 0.2°S of Moon    27  15     Venus 0.1°N of Jupiter    28  13     Mercury 5.0°S of VenusSep 01  02:03  NEW MOON     01  02:07  Annular Solar Eclipse; mag=0.974    01  08:27  Moon at Ascending Node     02  08     Neptune at Opposition     03  03:33  Venus 1.1°S of Moon: Occn.    04  12:56  Spica 5.8°S of Moon    04  13:05  Saturn 5.9°N of Antares    06  11:44  Moon at Apogee: 405059 km    08  14:23  Saturn 3.8°S of Moon    09  04:49  FIRST QUARTER MOON     12  17     Mercury at Inferior Conjunction     15  16:55  Moon at Descending Node     16  11:54  Pen. Lunar Eclipse; mag=0.908    16  12:05  FULL MOON     18  08:15  Venus 2.2°N of Spica    18  10:00  Moon at Perigee: 361894 km    21  15:13  Aldebaran 0.2°S of Moon    22  07:21  Autumnal Equinox     23  02:56  LAST QUARTER MOON     25  23     Jupiter in Conjunction with Sun     27  15:32  Regulus 1.7°N of Moon    28  08     Mercury at Perihelion     28  12     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 17.9°W    28  15:06  Moon at Ascending Node     29  03:42  Mercury 0.7°N of Moon: Occn.    30  17:12  NEW MOON Oct 03  10:30  Venus 5.0°S of Moon    04  04:02  Moon at Apogee: 406100 km    06  01:04  Saturn 3.8°S of Moon    08  21:33  FIRST QUARTER MOON     11  03     Mercury 0.8°N of Jupiter    13  02:43  Moon at Descending Node     15  03     Uranus at Opposition     15  21:23  FULL MOON     16  16:36  Moon at Perigee: 357860 km    18  23:18  Aldebaran 0.3°S of Moon    20  22     Orionid Meteor Shower    22  12:14  LAST QUARTER MOON     24  21:01  Regulus 1.6°N of Moon    25  18:44  Moon at Ascending Node     26  03:56  Venus 3.0°N of Antares    27  09     Mercury at Superior Conjunction     28  02:33  Jupiter 1.4°S of Moon    29  06     Mars at Perihelion:  1.38124 AU    29  19     Venus 3.0°S of Saturn    30  10:38  NEW MOON     31  12:29  Moon at Apogee: 406660 kmNov 02  12:38  Saturn 3.7°S of Moon    04  22     S Taurid Meteor Shower    06  05:07  Mars 5.3°S of Moon    07  12:51  FIRST QUARTER MOON     09  08:57  Moon at Descending Node     11  21     N Taurid Meteor Shower    14  04:23  Moon at Perigee: 356512 km    14  06:52  FULL MOON     15  09:50  Aldebaran 0.4°S of Moon    17  04     Leonid Meteor Shower    19  10:51  Beehive 4.3°N of Moon    21  01:33  LAST QUARTER MOON     21  03:08  Regulus 1.3°N of Moon    21  19:48  Moon at Ascending Node     23  12     Mercury 3.4°S of Saturn    24  18:47  Jupiter 1.9°S of Moon    27  13:08  Moon at Apogee: 406556 km    29  05:18  NEW MOON Dec 03  05:34  Venus 5.8°S of Moon    05  03:39  Mars 2.9°S of Moon    06  10:35  Moon at Descending Node     07  02:03  FIRST QUARTER MOON     10  04     Saturn in Conjunction with Sun     10  21     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 20.8°E    12  16:27  Moon at Perigee: 358463 km    12  21:14  Aldebaran 0.5°S of Moon    13  17     Geminid Meteor Shower    13  17:06  FULL MOON     16  20:17  Beehive 4.1°N of Moon    18  11:13  Regulus 1.0°N of Moon    18  21:46  Moon at Ascending Node     20  18:56  LAST QUARTER MOON     21  03:45  Winter Solstice     22  01     Ursid Meteor Shower    22  09:37  Jupiter 2.4°S of Moon    24  22:55  Moon at Apogee: 405870 km    25  08     Mercury at Perihelion     28  12     Mercury at Inferior Conjunction     28  23:53  NEW MOON     

 Terms Used in Astronomical Events Calendar 
  • Perihelion - instant when a planet is closest to the Sun
  • Aphelion - instant when a planet is furthest from the Sun
  • Perigee - instant when the Moon is closest to Earth
  • Apogee - instant when the Moon is furthest from Earth
  • Inferior Conjunction - instant when a planet (Mercury or Venus) passes between Earth and the Sun
  • Superior Conjunction - instant when a planet (Mercury or Venus) passes on the opposite side of the Sun from Earth 
  • Greatest Elongation - the maximum angular separation between the Sun and the planet (Mercury or Venus) as seen from Earth 
     - during eastern elongation (E), the planet appears as an evening star; 
     - during western elongation (W), the planet appears as a morning star
  • Opposition - instant when a planet appears opposite the Sun as seen from Earth
  • Conjunction - instant when a planet appears closest the Sun as seen from Earth
  • Occultation - the Moon occults or eclipses a star or planet
  • Ascending Node - point where the Moon crosses from the southern to northern portion of its orbit
  • Descending Node - point where the Moon crosses from the northern to the southern portion of its orbit

  • Aldebaran - bright star in the constellation Taurus
  • Pollux - bright star in the constellation Gemini
  • Regulus - bright star in the constellation Leo
  • Spica - bright star in the constellation Virgo
  • Antares - bright star in the constellation Scorpius
  • Pleiades - bright star cluster in the constellation Taurus
  • Beehive - bright star cluster in the constellation Cancer
Calendars of Astronomical Events: 2011 to 2020
The Americas
Below are links to calendars of astronomical events from 2011 to 2020 for seven time zones in the Americas. 
Choose a time zone and click on a year to get a calendar of astronomical events for that year.
   Calendars of Astronomical Events - The Americas
   AST    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   EST    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   CST    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   MST    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   PST    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   AKST    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   HST    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
        Time Zones Abbreviations
        • AST = Atlantic Standard Time (= GMT - 4 hours)
        • EST = Eastern Standard Time (= GMT - 5 hours)
        • CST = Central Standard Time (= GMT - 6 hours)
        • MST = Mountain Standard Time (= GMT - 7 hours)
        • PST = Pacific Standard Time (= GMT - 8 hours)
        • AKST = Alaskan Standard Time (= GMT - 9 hours)
        • HST = Hawaiian Standard Time (= GMT - 10 hours)
           (where GMT = Greenwich Mean Time)
A time zone may have a different name in different countries. Note the difference in hours between a given time zone and Greenwich Mean Time to help in identification.
For other years and other time zones, visit: Calendars of Astronomical Events.
 
Accuracy of the Astronomical Events Calendars
The goal of the Astronomical Events Calendars is to present a wide range of solar system phenomena with reasonable accuracy. In general, events listed to the nearest hour are accurate to ± 30 minutes.Events listed with a precision in hours and minutes (i.e., hh:mm) are typically accurate to ± 5 minutes or less.  
The following table gives a more detailed breakdown of the accuracy of times for various astronomical events.
Accuracy of the Astronomical Events Calendars
 Solstice/Equinox (Earth)  ± 0.5 minute 
 Aphelion/Perihelion (Earth)  ± 30 minutes;  ± 0.00001 AU 
 Solar and Lunar Eclipses   ± 0.5 minute 
 Phases of the Moon  ± 0.5 minute 
 Moon at Nodes  ± 2 minutes 
 Apogee/Perigee of Moon  ± 5 minutes; ± 5 kilometers 
 Conjunctions of Moon with Star or Planet  ± 10 minutes 
 Conjunctions of Planet with Planet  ± 3 hours 
 Inferior/Superior Conjunctions (Mercury & Venus)  ± 30 minutes 
 Greatest Elongation (Mercury & Venus)  ± 30 minutes 
 Opposition/Conjunction (Outer Planets)  ± 3 hours 
 Aphelion/Perihelion of Planets  ± 30 minutes 

Acknowledgements
All calculations are by Fred Espenak and he assumes full responsibility for their accuracy. Algorithms used in predicting many of the astronomical events are based on Astronomical Algorithms by Jean Meeus (Willmann-Bell Inc. Richmond 1998). 
Permission is freely granted to reproduce this data when accompanied by the acknowledgment: 

Return to: Calendars of Astronomical Events
Return to: Planetary Ephemeris Data