Observe the sky: February 2025

After the January exams, February continues to be a complicated month for many with exam resits. But don’t worry, I’m sure with effort and determination what couldn’t be in January will be in February. For now, we continue with the observation break to resume with more strength in March, when hopefully the weather will cooperate a little more. Meanwhile, here are some tips for you to observe the main astronomical events you can enjoy during the month of February. For many of them you don’t need anything more than your eyes!

Day	Time	Event
1	05:11	Moon in conjunction with Saturn, 0.97° to the North
1	17:23	Venus in conjunction with Neptune, 3.31° to the North
1	23:08	Moon in conjunction with Venus, 2.07° to the South
2	03:36	Moon at perigee ( 367506 km)
5	09:05	Moon in its first Quarter
7	03:19	Moon in conjunction with Jupiter, 5.42° to the North
9	12:54	Mercury at superior conjunction
9	20:51	Moon in conjunction with Mars, 0.76° to the North
11	20:45	Uranus at quadrature
12	14:56	Full Moon
18	02:00	Moon at apogee ( 404869 km)
20	18:35	Moon in its last Quarter
25	12:49	Mercury in conjunction with Saturn, 1.45° to the North
28	01:47	New Moon
28	19:43	Moon in conjunction with Saturn, 1.30° to the North

Table 1: Main astronomical events of the month of February. Local time.

The Sun will continue its rapid rise during February, and this is clearly reflected in the days. Little by little it is dawning a bit earlier and dusk is later. Additionally, as last year, we will start the month with a waxing crescent Moon, observable in the evening if we look towards sunset (southwest).

Sun during February 2025. — **Figure 1:** Variation of the Sun's position during the month of February. Left: Maximum daily elevation of the Sun during the month. Right: Position in the sky if observed every day at the same time (12.00 UT). In orange the positions of the Sun throughout February; in yellow, throughout the year (analemma).

Moon during February 2025. — **Figure 2:** Observability and illumination of the Moon during the month of February 2025. In red the time zone (universal time, UT; local time = UT + 1) during which you will be able to observe the Moon. The vertical white lines indicate the time of the Moon's passage through the local meridian.

Moon during February 2025 (II). — **Figure 3:** Phases and Moon orbit during February 2025.

In terms of planets, we continue with the observational trio. If December and January were good months, February is still a good month. In particular, early in the night, just after sunset, we can continue enjoying observing ALL the planets of the Solar System ‘aligned’, well, as aligned as they can be. Take advantage of it, because something like this won’t happen again until the year 2492.

Planets observability towards the beginning of February 2025 — **Figure 4:** Observability of the different planets of the Solar System from Granada in February 2025. In red, the time zone (universal time) during which you will be able to observe the different planets. The vertical white lines indicate the time of the passage of the various planets through the local meridian.

Planets observability towards the middle of February 2025 — **Figure 4:** Observability of the different planets of the Solar System from Granada in February 2025. In red, the time zone (universal time) during which you will be able to observe the different planets. The vertical white lines indicate the time of the passage of the various planets through the local meridian.

Planetary situation for the month of February 2025 in Granada. — **Figure 5:** Representation of the sky that will be observable at the end, beginning and middle of a typical February night from Granada (February 14th is chosen as representative). The positions of the planets as well as their motion relative to the fixed stellar background are indicated. For the planets with less apparent motion (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune) a zoom is included for tracking with telescopes.

And in February we continue with the novelties introduced in January. On the one hand, here is the table (Jupiter table) where you can find all the observable phenomena from Granada as well as some extra information. Especially interesting will be the night of February 10th to 11th when we can enjoy the transit of Io and its shadow, all accompanied by Jupiter’s Great Red Spot. Also, the late afternoon/evening of the 18th will be quite striking, when we can enjoy the transit of Europa and its shadow, the occultation and eclipse of Io, and Jupiter’s Great Red Spot.

This month we will also continue enjoying the beautiful winter sky, dominated by bright stars including Rigel, Aldebaran, Capella, Castor/Pollux, Procyon and Sirius, the so-called winter hexagon.

The sky over Granada during the month of February 2025. — **Figure 6:** Representation of the sky that will be observable on a typical February night from Granada. The ecliptic is indicated (dashed line) as well as the main deep sky objects.

And, as with the Jupiter ephemeris table, we also continue with the second addition from last month. This time we leave aside the ‘natural sky’ and focus on the artificial sky. We are talking about the passes of the International Space Station that are visible from Granada. In the following table you can see the dates, times and characteristics of the moments when the International Space Station will be visible from Granada (ISS table). Unfortunately during this month the main transits will be visible early in the morning, so the passes on February 13th and 16th at 7.21 and 6.36 respectively, with magnitudes of -3.7 and -3.8 are notable.

And with this we say goodbye. We hope you have a good month of February, that you pass as many subjects as possible, but hopefully you don’t have to take any exams, but if that is the case, we hope this guide gives you some moments of peace surrounded by the Universe around us. Please remember that we are open to suggestions on our Telegram channel, where you can also stay up to date on activities, workshops, talks… Here is the link! We hope to see you soon at our activities.

Clear skies! And as always during exam times, good luck with your exams!