2017Calendar of Astronomical Events

    
2017Phases of the Moon
Gulf Standard Time
The following table gives the date and time of the Moon's phases for the year. The times listed are for Gulf Standard Time(Greenwich Mean Time + 4 hours).If Daylight Saving Time is in effect, add one hour to the times listed. 
   
      2017 Phases of the Moon   
      Gulf Standard Time
 New Moon  First Quarter  Full Moon  Last Quarter 
- Jan  5  23:47    Jan 12  15:34    Jan 20  02:14   
 Jan 28  04:07    Feb  4  08:19    Feb 11  04:33 n  Feb 18  23:33   
 Feb 26  18:58 A  Mar  5  15:32    Mar 12  18:54    Mar 20  19:58   
 Mar 28  06:57    Apr  3  22:39    Apr 11  10:08    Apr 19  13:57   
 Apr 26  16:16    May  3  06:47    May 11  01:43    May 19  04:33   
 May 25  23:44    Jun  1  16:42    Jun  9  17:10    Jun 17  15:33   
 Jun 24  06:31    Jul  1  04:51    Jul  9  08:07    Jul 16  23:26   
 Jul 23  13:46    Jul 30  19:23    Aug  7  22:11 p  Aug 15  05:15   
 Aug 21  22:30 T  Aug 29  12:13    Sep  6  11:03    Sep 13  10:25   
 Sep 20  09:30    Sep 28  06:54    Oct  5  22:40    Oct 12  16:25   
 Oct 19  23:12    Oct 28  02:22    Nov  4  09:23    Nov 11  00:37   
 Nov 18  15:42    Nov 26  21:03    Dec  3  19:47    Dec 10  11:51   
 Dec 18  10:31    Dec 26  13:20   --
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.
2017Calendar of Astronomical Events
Gulf Standard Time
The following table gives the date and time of the important astronomical events for the year. The times listed are for Gulf Standard Time(Greenwich Mean Time + 4 hours).If Daylight Saving Time is in effect, add one hour to the times listed. A key to astronomical terms appears below the calendar.
   
      2017Calendar of Astronomical Events   
   Gulf Standard Time  
 January - June   July - December 
Date     GST   Event        (h:m)Jan 02  13:20  Venus 1.9°S of Moon    02  22:14  Moon at Descending Node     03  10:47  Mars 0.2°S of Moon: Occn.    03  18     Quadrantid Meteor Shower    04  19     Earth at Perihelion: 0.98331 AU    05  23:47  FIRST QUARTER MOON     09  13     Mercury 6.7°N of Saturn    09  18:07  Aldebaran 0.4°S of Moon    10  10:07  Moon at Perigee: 363242 km    12  15:34  FULL MOON     12  17     Venus at Greatest Elong: 47.1°E    13  17:59  Beehive 3.9°N of Moon    15  08:07  Regulus 0.9°N of Moon    15  14:44  Moon at Ascending Node     19  09:26  Jupiter 2.7°S of Moon    19  14     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 24.1°W    20  02:14  LAST QUARTER MOON     22  04:14  Moon at Apogee: 404913 km    24  14:37  Saturn 3.6°S of Moon    26  04:46  Mercury 3.7°S of Moon    28  04:07  NEW MOON     30  02:21  Moon at Descending Node     31  17:11  Jupiter 3.5°N of Spica    31  18:34  Venus 4.1°N of MoonFeb 01  05:09  Mars 2.3°N of Moon    02  17     Venus 5.4°N of Mars    04  08:19  FIRST QUARTER MOON     06  01:14  Aldebaran 0.2°S of Moon    06  17:59  Moon at Perigee: 368817 km    07  18     Mercury at Aphelion     10  03:46  Beehive 3.9°N of Moon    11  04:33  FULL MOON     11  04:44  Pen. Lunar Eclipse; mag=0.988    11  18:04  Regulus 0.8°N of Moon    11  23:49  Moon at Ascending Node     15  18:55  Jupiter 2.7°S of Moon    17  11     Jupiter at Aphelion:  5.45652 AU    18  23:33  LAST QUARTER MOON     19  01:14  Moon at Apogee: 404376 km    20  20     Venus at Perihelion     21  03:44  Saturn 3.6°S of Moon    26  10:28  Moon at Descending Node     26  18:53  Annular Solar Eclipse; mag=0.992    26  18:58  NEW MOON Mar 01  22:58  Mars 4.3°N of Moon    02  06     Neptune in Conjunction with Sun     03  11:24  Moon at Perigee: 369065 km    05  06:38  Aldebaran 0.2°S of Moon    05  15:32  FIRST QUARTER MOON     07  04     Mercury at Superior Conjunction     09  11:12  Beehive 3.9°N of Moon    11  02:20  Regulus 0.8°N of Moon    11  08:17  Moon at Ascending Node     12  18:54  FULL MOON     15  00:04  Jupiter 2.5°S of Moon    18  21:25  Moon at Apogee: 404651 km    20  14:29  Vernal Equinox     20  14:49  Saturn 3.4°S of Moon    20  19:58  LAST QUARTER MOON     23  18     Mercury at Perihelion     25  15     Venus at Inferior Conjunction     25  19:41  Moon at Descending Node     28  06:57  NEW MOON     30  16:39  Moon at Perigee: 363855 km    30  17:03  Mars 5.5°N of MoonApr 01  12:50  Aldebaran 0.3°S of Moon    01  14     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 19.0°E    03  22:39  FIRST QUARTER MOON     05  16:45  Beehive 3.8°N of Moon    07  08:30  Regulus 0.7°N of Moon    07  13:14  Moon at Ascending Node     08  01     Jupiter at Opposition     11  01:20  Jupiter 2.2°S of Moon    11  10:08  FULL MOON     14  10     Uranus in Conjunction with Sun     15  14:05  Moon at Apogee: 405478 km    16  22:39  Saturn 3.2°S of Moon    19  13:57  LAST QUARTER MOON     20  10     Mercury at Inferior Conjunction     21  12:16  Mars 3.4°S of Pleiades    22  02:30  Moon at Descending Node     22  16     Lyrid Meteor Shower    23  21:59  Venus 5.2°N of Moon    26  16:16  NEW MOON     27  20:18  Moon at Perigee: 359325 km    28  21:19  Aldebaran 0.5°S of MoonMay 02  22:23  Beehive 3.6°N of Moon    03  06:47  FIRST QUARTER MOON     04  13:49  Regulus 0.5°N of Moon    04  14:42  Moon at Ascending Node     05  05     Eta-Aquarid Meteor Shower    05  17:51  Mars 6.1°N of Aldebaran    08  01:24  Jupiter 2.1°S of Moon    11  01:43  FULL MOON     12  23:51  Moon at Apogee: 406212 km    14  03:07  Saturn 3.1°S of Moon    18  03     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 25.8°W    19  04:33  LAST QUARTER MOON     19  05:30  Moon at Descending Node     22  16:32  Venus 2.4°N of Moon    24  05:20  Mercury 1.6°N of Moon    25  23:44  NEW MOON     26  05:23  Moon at Perigee: 357210 km    30  05:50  Beehive 3.4°N of Moon    31  15:56  Moon at Ascending Node     31  20:08  Regulus 0.3°N of MoonJun 01  16:42  FIRST QUARTER MOON     03  15     Venus at Greatest Elong: 45.9°W    04  03:57  Jupiter 2.3°S of Moon    07  07:19  Mercury 5.3°S of Pleiades    09  02:21  Moon at Apogee: 406402 km    09  17:10  FULL MOON     10  05:25  Saturn 3.1°S of Moon    13  04     Venus at Aphelion     15  06:40  Moon at Descending Node     15  13     Saturn at Opposition     17  15:33  LAST QUARTER MOON     19  17     Mercury at Perihelion     21  01:13  Venus 2.4°N of Moon    21  08:25  Summer Solstice     21  18     Mercury at Superior Conjunction     22  18:23  Aldebaran 0.5°S of Moon    23  14:49  Moon at Perigee: 357938 km    24  06:31  NEW MOON     26  15:18  Beehive 3.2°N of Moon    27  20:26  Moon at Ascending Node     28  04:26  Regulus 0.1°N of Moon
Date     GST   Event        (h:m)Jul 01  04:51  FIRST QUARTER MOON     01  11:28  Jupiter 2.7°S of Moon    04  00     Earth at Aphelion: 1.01668 AU    05  04:21  Venus 6.5°S of Pleiades    06  08:27  Moon at Apogee: 405934 km    07  07:34  Saturn 3.2°S of Moon    09  08:07  FULL MOON     10  05:33  Mercury 0.1°N of Beehive    12  09:17  Moon at Descending Node     13  22:03  Venus 3.1°N of Aldebaran    16  23:26  LAST QUARTER MOON     20  03:37  Aldebaran 0.4°S of Moon    20  15:13  Venus 2.7°N of Moon    21  21:09  Moon at Perigee: 361238 km    23  13:46  NEW MOON     25  04:46  Moon at Ascending Node     25  12:49  Mercury 0.9°S of Moon: Occn.    25  14:14  Regulus 0.0°S of Moon    25  21:03  Mercury 0.8°S of Regulus    27  04     Mars in Conjunction with Sun     28  07     Delta-Aquarid Meteor Shower    29  00:15  Jupiter 3.1°S of Moon    30  08     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 27.2°E    30  19:23  FIRST QUARTER MOON Aug 02  17     Mercury at Aphelion     02  21:55  Moon at Apogee: 405026 km    03  11:31  Saturn 3.5°S of Moon    07  22:11  FULL MOON     07  22:20  Partial Lunar Eclipse; mag=0.246    08  14:56  Moon at Descending Node     12  23     Perseid Meteor Shower    15  05:15  LAST QUARTER MOON     16  10:39  Aldebaran 0.4°S of Moon    18  17:14  Moon at Perigee: 366129 km    19  08:45  Venus 2.2°N of Moon    20  11:15  Beehive 3.2°N of Moon    20  22:08  Venus 7.2°S of Pollux    21  14:34  Moon at Ascending Node     21  22:26  Total Solar Eclipse; mag=1.031    21  22:30  NEW MOON     25  17:00  Jupiter 3.5°S of Moon    27  01     Mercury at Inferior Conjunction     29  12:13  FIRST QUARTER MOON     30  15:25  Moon at Apogee: 404307 km    30  18:23  Saturn 3.6°S of MoonSep 01  10:08  Venus 1.4°S of Beehive    04  22:41  Moon at Descending Node     05  04     Mercury 3.2°S of Mars    05  08     Neptune at Opposition     06  11:03  FULL MOON     10  09:30  Mercury 0.7°S of Regulus    11  01:44  Jupiter 2.9°N of Spica    12  14     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 17.9°W    12  16:09  Aldebaran 0.4°S of Moon    13  10:25  LAST QUARTER MOON     13  20:04  Moon at Perigee: 369856 km    15  16     Mercury at Perihelion     16  18:50  Beehive 3.1°N of Moon    16  22     Mercury 0.1°N of Mars    17  22:28  Moon at Ascending Node     18  04:56  Venus 0.5°N of Moon: Occn.    18  08:32  Regulus 0.1°S of Moon    19  03:22  Mercury 0.0°N of Moon: Occn.    20  01:30  Venus 0.4°N of Regulus    20  09:30  NEW MOON     22  11:51  Jupiter 3.7°S of Moon    23  00:02  Autumnal Equinox     27  04:09  Saturn 3.5°S of Moon    27  10:49  Moon at Apogee: 404342 km    28  06:54  FIRST QUARTER MOON Oct 02  06:05  Moon at Descending Node     03  13     Venus at Perihelion     05  20     Venus 0.2°N of Mars    05  22:40  FULL MOON     08  02     Mars at Aphelion:  1.66609 AU    09  01     Mercury at Superior Conjunction     09  09:51  Moon at Perigee: 366858 km    09  22:05  Aldebaran 0.6°S of Moon    12  16:25  LAST QUARTER MOON     14  00:29  Beehive 3.0°N of Moon    15  02:10  Moon at Ascending Node     15  14:54  Regulus 0.2°S of Moon    17  14:04  Mars 1.8°S of Moon    18  04:21  Venus 2.0°S of Moon    19  21     Uranus at Opposition     19  23:12  NEW MOON     21  15     Orionid Meteor Shower    24  15:54  Saturn 3.3°S of Moon    25  06:25  Moon at Apogee: 405151 km    26  22     Jupiter in Conjunction with Sun     28  02:22  FIRST QUARTER MOON     29  10:41  Moon at Descending Node Nov 02  17:58  Venus 3.3°N of Spica    04  09:23  FULL MOON     05  15     S Taurid Meteor Shower    06  04:09  Moon at Perigee: 361438 km    06  06:19  Aldebaran 0.8°S of Moon    10  05:58  Beehive 2.7°N of Moon    11  00:37  LAST QUARTER MOON     11  02:40  Moon at Ascending Node     11  20:07  Regulus 0.4°S of Moon    12  15     N Taurid Meteor Shower    12  21:50  Mercury 2.2°N of Antares    13  12     Venus 0.3°N of Jupiter    15  04:40  Mars 3.2°S of Moon    17  21     Leonid Meteor Shower    18  15:42  NEW MOON     21  04:34  Saturn 3.0°S of Moon    21  22:52  Moon at Apogee: 406132 km    24  04     Mercury at Greatest Elong: 22.0°E    25  12:22  Moon at Descending Node     26  21:03  FIRST QUARTER MOON     29  18:30  Mars 2.9°N of SpicaDec 03  17:00  Aldebaran 0.8°S of Moon    03  19:47  FULL MOON     04  12:42  Moon at Perigee: 357496 km    07  04     Mercury 1.3°S of Saturn    07  13:30  Beehive 2.5°N of Moon    08  04:39  Moon at Ascending Node     09  02:25  Regulus 0.7°S of Moon    10  11:51  LAST QUARTER MOON     12  16     Mercury at Perihelion     13  06     Mercury at Inferior Conjunction     13  20:27  Mars 4.2°S of Moon    14  10     Geminid Meteor Shower    14  18:26  Jupiter 4.2°S of Moon    18  10:31  NEW MOON     19  05:27  Moon at Apogee: 406605 km    21  20:29  Winter Solstice     22  00     Saturn in Conjunction with Sun     22  14:04  Moon at Descending Node     22  19     Ursid Meteor Shower    26  13:20  FIRST QUARTER MOON     31  04:25  Aldebaran 0.7°S of 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
Europe, Africa, and the Middle East
Below are links to calendars of astronomical events from 2011 to 2020 for five time zones 
in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. 
Choose a time zone and click on a year to get a calendar of astronomical events for that year.
   Calendar of Astronomical Events - Europe, Africa, & Middle East
   GMT    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   CET    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   EET    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   MSK    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
   GST    2011     2012     2013     2014     2015     2016     2017     2018     2019     2020 
        Time Zones Abbreviations
        • GMT = Greenwich Mean Time 
        • CET = Central European Time (= GMT + 1 hour)
        • EET = Eastern European Time (= GMT + 2 hours)
        • MSK = Moscow Time (= GMT + 3 hours)
        • GST = Gulf Standard Time (= GMT + 4 hours)
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