Astronomy Essentials

Earth flies between Jupiter and the sun January 2026

Two views of a banded planet, one considerably bigger. The smaller view has a white dot beside it.
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Here’s why Jupiter was extra bright in December 2024. It was at its closest to Earth and therefore largest in our sky. So, it was reflecting more sunlight in our direction. It’ll be closest to Earth again on January 9, 2026, and will reach opposition on January 10, 2026. Nishat Khan in Vaughan, Ontario, shared this comparison image of Jupiter from September 16 with one taken on December 14, 2024. Nishat wrote: “Comparing 2 images of Jupiter taken 3 months apart. It was about 40 arcseconds in the September image; while it is bigger, around 48 arcseconds, in the image taken around opposition time in December. Both images are taken with the exact same setup. September image shows the moon Io as well.” Thank you, Nishat!

Jupiter in 2025: Starting in January 2025, Jupiter was a very bright object near Aldebaran and the Hyades in Taurus the Bull. It was brighter than all the stars. It remained a bright star in the evening sky through May. It emerged in the morning sky in July. Jupiter did not reach opposition in 2025, but will do so on January 10, 2026. So Jupiter will be brightest starting in late December 2025 through January 2026.
Jupiter will reach opposition at 8 UTC (2 a.m. CDT) on January 10, 2026. Opposition is when Earth will fly between Jupiter and the sun, bringing the giant planet opposite the sun in our sky. As seen from around the globe, Jupiter will rise in the east as the sun sets in the west. It’ll be shining at its highest in the sky, more or less where the sun was at your local noon, around midnight (the time each day when the sun will be below your feet). That’ll be true no matter where you are on Earth.
Jupiter will be closest to Earth one day before its opposition, on January 9, 2026. At that time, its distance will be 393 million miles/ 633 million km/ 35 light-minutes from Earth. Read more: Why is Jupiter closest before opposition?
Opposition constellation: Gemini the Twins.
Brightness at opposition: Magnitude -2.53. Jupiter shines as the 4th-brightest object in the sky, after the sun, moon and planet Venus. It’ll be the brightest starlike object visible for most of the night.
Size at opposition (as seen through a telescope): 46.58 arcseconds across.
Through binoculars (anytime): Jupiter reveals a bright disk. If you look closely, you’ll see several of its four Galilean moons appearing as pinpoints of light, arrayed in a line that bisects the giant planet.

How often does Jupiter reach opposition?

Jupiter takes 12 earthly years to orbit the sun once. So, the giant planet comes to opposition roughly every 13 months. By the same token, that’s how long Earth takes to travel once around the sun relative to Jupiter. Therefore, according to our earthly calendars, Jupiter’s opposition comes about a month later each year. Add to that the fact that there are 12 constellations of the zodiac. And there are 12 months in a year. So Jupiter appears in front of a new zodiacal constellation at each year’s opposition (Taurus); this year, Gemini).

2024 Jupiter opposition – December 7
2026 Jupiter opposition – January 10
2027 Jupiter opposition – February 10

Jupiter events in 2025-2026

January 1, 2025: Jupiter at perihelion or closest point to the sun for 2025.
February 4, 2025: Jupiter ends retrograde motion, a sign that the best time to observe Jupiter is ending. However, the planet will remain somewhere in the night sky through April 2025.
June 24, 2025: Jupiter at solar conjunction, or behind the sun as seen from Earth. Then it’ll emerge in the morning sky in July 2025.
November 11, 2025: Jupiter enters retrograde motion, that is, westward motion on the sky’s dome, a sign that opposition lay just ahead.
January 9, 2026: Jupiter at perigee, or closest to Earth for 2026.
January 10, 2026: Jupiter at opposition, or opposite the sun as seen from Earth.

A failed star

Perhaps you know that Jupiter isn’t a rocky planet like Earth. In fact, it’s more like a failed star, not massive enough or hot enough inside to spark thermonuclear fusion reactions, but some 2 1/2 times more massive than all the other planets in our solar system combined. Jupiter is big! But, without that thermonuclear reaction it can’t shine as stars do.

Overall, you’d need some 80 Jupiters – rolled into a ball – to be hot enough inside to spark fusion. So, Jupiter isn’t a star. That is, it doesn’t shine with its own light, but instead by reflected sunlight.

Yet in January 2026 – as bright Jupiter rises in the east opposite the sunset – you can stand on Earth all night and peer toward bright Jupiter in our sky. And indeed, you can imagine that, if the giant planet did have enough mass to shine as stars do, then around Jupiter’s opposition, we’d have no night at all. Instead, Jupiter would shine as a tiny 2nd sun, all night long.

Read more: How to see Jupiter’s moons

Animation showing Earth moving around and around the sun faster than Jupiter.
Jupiter (red) completes one orbit of the sun (center) for every 11.86 orbits of the Earth (blue), since our orbit is smaller, and we move faster! Animation via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).

For precise sun and Jupiter rising times at your location:

Old Farmer’s Almanac (U.S. and Canada)

timeanddate.com (worldwide)

Stellarium (online planetarium program)

In-the-sky information and finder chart for your location

Simple diagram of orbits, showing Earth between an outer planet and the sun.
Opposition happens when Earth flies between an outer planet, like Jupiter, and the sun. Illustration via Chris Peat/ Heavens-Above. Used with permission.
Jupiter with colorful, swirly banded atmosphere, spotted with oval storms. Titles and scale of size.
Jupiter and its stormy atmosphere as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope on September 4, 2021. Image via Amy Simon (NASA-GSFC)/ Michael H. Wong (UC Berkeley)/ Hubblesite.

EarthSky Community Photos

Banded planet.
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Jupiter as captured by David Hoskin in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, on December 7, 2024. David said: “Jupiter is always a lovely sight, especially when at its brightest. The Galilean moon Europa is to the left of the planet.” Thank you, David!
Slightly fuzzy large banded planet with small white dot nearby.
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Aurelian Neacsu of Visina, Dambovita, Romania, captured this image of Jupiter on August 22, 2023, and wrote: “The bright dot visible on the right bottom corner is not a planet’s satellite; it’s the star Sigma Arietis.” Thank you, Aurelian.

Got a picture of Jupiter? We’d love to see it. Submit them here.

Bottom line: Giant Jupiter is closest to Earth for 2026 on January 9. Then Earth will fly between the sun and Jupiter – bringing Jupiter to opposition – January 10.

Read more: Jupiter’s moons: How to see and enjoy them

Read: Why is Jupiter closest to Earth 1 day before opposition?

Posted 
January 9, 2026
 in 
Astronomy Essentials

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