Skywatchers in Indonesia will get a busy month of naked-eye astronomy in November 2026, according to AFU.id, with Mars and Jupiter converging in the eastern sky on 15–16 November, the Leonid meteor shower reaching its peak on the night of 17 November into the early hours of 18 November, and a supermoon rising on 24 November.
AFU.id reports that the whole sequence can be observed without a telescope, and that the best viewing windows for most events fall between midnight and dawn.
Why it matters
Nights like these are among the few chances for casual observers to see planetary motion and meteor activity with nothing more than clear skies and a dark location. AFU.id notes that the events require no equipment except when observers want to examine surface details on the planets, and that sites with little light pollution and an open view toward the east offer the best odds — particularly in the hours before sunrise.
A month that opens with the Taurids
The run of events begins earlier in November with the Southern Taurid meteor shower, which AFU.id says peaks on 4–5 November, followed by the Northern Taurids on 11–12 November. Both produce fewer meteors than the Leonids. A new moon on 9 November will leave the sky darker in the run-up to the Northern Taurid peak, according to the same report.
The headline event arrives mid-month. On 15–16 November, the gap between Mars and Jupiter narrows to roughly 1.2 degrees, which AFU.id describes as about twice the apparent width of a full moon. Both planets rise after midnight in the constellation Leo and are easiest to locate before dawn in the east. Jupiter appears bright white, while Mars is dimmer and takes on a reddish hue.
Leonids, Mercury and a supermoon
The Leonid meteor shower peaks from the evening of 17 November through the early morning of 18 November. Under dark skies, AFU.id reports, the shower produces about 10 to 15 meteors per hour, radiating from a point in Leo that rises around midnight. The first-quarter moon sets near midnight, leaving darker conditions afterward for meteor watching. The Leonids remain active from 6 November to 30 November.
Mercury reaches its greatest western elongation at 07:31 WIB on 21 November, sitting about 20 degrees from the Sun in the morning sky, according to AFU.id. The report advises looking low on the eastern horizon roughly 45 minutes before sunrise on 20 and 21 November, with Venus — then at its brightest — nearby as a reference point.
The full moon falls at 21:53 WIB on 24 November. AFU.id classifies it as a supermoon because the Moon is near its closest point to Earth, making it appear slightly larger and brighter than usual. It is the second of three supermoons in 2026, following one in January and preceding the 24 December event, which AFU.id says will be the year's closest. The Moon will also appear near the Pleiades star cluster that night.
Closing the month with the Moon, Mars and Jupiter
On 29–30 November, the Moon joins Jupiter and Mars near Regulus, the brightest star in Leo, with all three visible in the eastern sky before dawn. AFU.id describes the grouping as the month's final opportunity to see Mars and Jupiter in the same field of view as the Moon.
Cloud cover and rain are the main obstacles, according to AFU.id, which advises checking local forecasts before heading out.
Observers hoping to catch the conjunction should plan for pre-dawn viewing around 15–16 November, with the Leonid peak two nights later as the next target.
