Jupiter Will Make Its Biggest and Brightest Appearance of 2026 Soon—When to Look Up

The new year is starting out with a special event for stargazing. On Saturday, January 10, Jupiter will be at its most brilliant of 2026. That's because the planet will be at "opposition," meaning Earth will be directly between Jupiter and the sun, according to NASA.

In this alignment, Jupiter will appear bigger and brighter than it will all year, making it the best time to view the giant planet. To see the celestial event, look to the east; you'll be able to see the planet in the constellation Gemini.

During opposition, Jupiter will reach a magnitude of -2.7, making it one of the brightest objects in the night sky (only the moon and Venus will be brighter). Plus, it’ll be visible through dawn most of the month, setting before sunrise until the end of January, reports EarthSky.org.

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Interestingly, Jupiter will actually be closest to Earth one day before its opposition on January 9. At that time, its distance will be 393 million miles from Earth. According to EarthSky.org, because both planets are moving on curved, slightly tilted paths, the moment of alignment isn’t always the exact moment of the closest distance; Earth can pass closest to Jupiter a little before or after opposition.

Jupiter takes 12 years to orbit the sun once. So, the giant planet comes to opposition roughly every 13 months. It didn’t have an opposition last year, so be sure to experience the special moment this weekend.