Is “planet parade” the latest buzzword in skywatching? Supermoons, shooting stars “lighting up the night sky,” and “ring of fire” eclipses have been popular in recent years. Now, step forward the prospect of a planetary alignment, apparently more than enough to get mainstream audiences looking up.

It was difficult to get away from the so-called “planet parades” in early 2025, when Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, Venus and Saturn were in the night sky simultaneously — though only four of them were visible.

Cue February 2026, which looks set to bring just as much in the way of hype about so-called rare planetary alignments. With Mars swapped out for Mercury, this time it’s even harder to see.

February 2026’s ‘planet parade’

Saturday, Feb. 28, is the date being promoted for seeing six planets in the evening sky. “On Feb. 28, we will see not one, not two, but six planets in the evening sky,” writes Alyssa Lee on the space agency’s “Watch the Skies” blog. “Mercury, Venus, Neptune, Saturn, Uranus, and Jupiter will appear shortly after sunset.”

Unfortunately, “see” is doing a lot of work here.

To have any chance at all, you’ll need:

• An unobstructed view due west
• Clear skies
• About half anhour after sunset on Saturday, Feb. 28
• Binoculars, a telescope — and most likely, a healthy dose of imagination.

Dissecting the ‘planet parade’

The main issue with seeing all six planets is that four of them are already close to the sun and will only be visible for a short time — if at all — in bright twilight. Venus and Mercury will be closest to the horizon during twilight, followed by Saturn and Neptune, with Uranus and Jupiter much higher in the sky. In practice, seeing more than three planets will likely be a challenge.