Mercury Position and Visibility Tonight
Where is Mercury right now?
Mercury is located in the constellation Cancer, approximately 1.25 AU (186,997,338 km) from Earth. It is currently below the horizon and is not visible from your location.
Mercury visibility on 2026-08-18
Mercury Rises at sunrise
Mercury rise and set timetable
| Time | Elevation | |
Moonrise, 21% illuminated  | 09:49 | 69° |
| Mercury transit | 10:33 | 70° |
| Mercury set | 17:30 | |
| Astronomical observing session begins | 19:32 | -21° |
| Moonset | 20:26 | -27° |
| Astronomical observing session ends | 02:51 | -8° |
| Mercury rise | 03:40 | |
| Civil sunrise | 03:59 | 4° |
| Sunrise | 04:28 | 10° |
Track Mercury Position Throughout the Night
← 18 August 2026 →
| Time | |
| Altitude | |
| Azimuth |
Shift the map to change the time and observe Mercury changing position in the night sky.
Upcoming Events
| Time | Description | Constellation |
|---|---|---|
| 28 August 2026 at 15:00 | Leo | |
| 12 October 2026 | Greatest elongation of Mercury | Libra |
| 24 October 2026 | Retrograde motion of Mercury begins | Libra |
| 5 November 2026 at 15:00 | Libra | |
| 13 November 2026 | Retrograde motion of Mercury ends | Virgo |
Current position in the Solar System: Mercury
| Date | Tue, 18 August 2026 |
| Distance from Earth | 1.2522 AU (187,326,454km) |
| Elongation | 10° |
| Angular diameter | 5.4" |
| Magnitude | -1.4 |
Finder Chart for Mercury
Double-click to unlock the map.
| Object name | Mercury |
| Field of view | |
| Limiting magnitude | |
| Mercury coordinates | 9.21556, 17.557 |
| Center coordinates | 9.21556, 17.557 |
Mercury Passage Through Night
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Current position of Mercury
| Time | 18:33 |
| Latitude | 37.3541 |
| Longitude | -121.955 |
| Elevation | -11° |
| Azimuth | 302° |
Here you can see the current position of Mercury on the map, as well as its positions for rise and set. This tool lets you track its movement throughout the night with accurate, up-to-date information.
Annual motion of Mercury
Mercury will become visible again around November 10 after moving far enough from the Sun.
| Date | Wed, 19 August 2026 |
| Twilight start | 19:30 |
| Twilight end | 02:49 |
| Twilight duration | 7h 19m |
| Rise | 03:45 |
| Set | 17:32 |
| Elevation at transit | 70° |
| Transit time | 10:38 |
| Equatorial coordinates | RA: 09h 19m 47s", Dec: 17° 07' 40s |
| Magnitude | -2 |
| Constellation | Cancer |
The graph illustrates the annual visibility pattern of Mercury, including its daily appearances and transit times. The vertical axis shows the hours of the day and the horizontal axis spans the year. The reddish area marks when the object is above the horizon, while the white line marks its daily transit.
You can also view detailed visibility information in a table with exact rise, transit, and set times for each date.
You can also view detailed visibility information in a table with exact rise, transit, and set times for each date.
Astrometric and Physical Parameters of Mercury
Coordinates and Visibility
| Right Ascension | 9.21556° |
| Declination | 17.557° |
| Magnitude | -1.4 |
| Constellation | Cancer |
| Elevation | -11.1° |
| Azimuth | 302.4° |
Basic Properties
| Mass, kg | 3.302E+23 |
| Mean density, g/cm³ | 5.427 |
Rotation
| Sidereal rotation period, days | 58.6463 d |
| Mean solar day, hours | 175.9421 d |
Surface and Atmosphere
| Surface gravity, m/s² | 3.701 |
| Escape velocity, km/s | 4.435 |
| Mean temperature, K | 440 |
Brightness
| Visual magnitude V(1,0) | -0.42 |
Data Acknowledgment
Solar-system physical and orbital parameters are provided by the Solar System OpenData API , maintained by Le Système Solaire. We thank its contributors for making these open data available.