Mercury Observation Details
Mercury Daily Motion
Mercury will not be observable tonight. It will reach its transit at 48° by 11:27 and set at 17:14. Throughout the night, from 22:59 to 03:56, it will be below the horizon. Mercury will rise again after sunrise, at 05:39.Mercury will be visible until March, 2, when it will move too close to the Sun. During this time, its proximity to the Sun will cause it to disappear from the night sky, making it unobservable for a while.
Mercury Visibility Timetable on February 18
Mercury Rise and Set Timetable
| Time | Elevation | |
Moon Rise, 0.3% illuminated  | 05:06 | -7° |
| Mercury transit | 11:27 | 48° |
| Sunset | 15:48 | 17° |
| Civil sunset | 16:16 | 11° |
| Moon Set | 16:21 | 10° |
| Mercury set | 17:14 | |
| Astrosession begin | 17:17 | -1° |
| Astrosession end | 03:25 | -26° |
| Mercury rise | 05:39 |
Track Mercury Position Throughout the Night
← Wed, 18 February 2026 →
| Time | |
| Altitude | |
| Azimuth |
Shift the map to change the time and observe Mercury changing position in the night sky.
Where is Mercury right now?
Mercury is located in the constellation Aquarius, at right ascension 23h 13m 27s" and declination -4° 05' 07s, approximately 0.98 AU (146,605,913 km) from Earth. At the current time, it is below the horizon and not visible from your location.Upcoming Events
| Time | Description | Constellation |
|---|---|---|
| Fri, 20 February 2026 | Greatest Elongation of Mercury | Pisces |
| Wed, 25 February 2026 | Retrograde motion of Mercury begins | Pisces |
| Sun, 8 March 2026, 14:00 | Pisces | |
| Thu, 19 March 2026 | Retrograde motion of Mercury ends | Aquarius |
| Sat, 4 April 2026 | Greatest Elongation of Mercury | Aquarius |
Current position of Mercury in Solar System
| Date | Wed, 18 February 2026 |
| Distance from Earth to Mercury | 0.98716 AU (147,677,034km) |
| Elongation | 18° |
| Angular diameter | 6.8" |
| Magnitude | -0.6 |
Finder Chart for Mercury
Double-click to unlock the map.
| Object name | Mercury |
| Field of view | |
| Limiting magnitude | |
| Mercury coordinates | 23.22438, -4.08533 |
| Center coordinates | 23.22438, -4.08533 |
Mercury Passage Through Night
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Current position of Mercury
| Time | 22:59 |
| Latitude | 37.3541 |
| Longitude | -121.955 |
| Mercury elevation | -56° |
| Mercury Azimuth | 13° |
Here you can see the current position of the Mercury on the map, as well as its positions for rise and set. This tool allows you to track the Mercury's movement throughout the night, providing you with accurate and up-to-date information.
Annual motion of Mercury
| Date | Thu, 19 February 2026 |
| Twighlight start | 17:13 |
| Twighlight end | 03:19 |
| Twighlight duration | 10h 6m |
| Rise | 05:40 |
| Set | 17:16 |
| Elevation at transit | 49° |
| Transit time | 11:28 |
| Equatorial coordinates | RA: 23h 15m 48s", Dec: -3° 40' 08s |
| Magnitude | -1 |
| Constellation | Aquarius |
The graph illustrates the annual visibility pattern of a Mercury, providing a comprehensive overview of its daily appearances and transit times throughout the year.
The graph is structured with the vertical axis showing the hours of the day, ranging from 12 AM to 12 AM the next day, while the horizontal axis spans each day of the year.
The reddish shaded area indicates the periods when the Mercury is above the horizon, visible to observers. The white line marks the times when the celestial object reaches its highest point in the sky each day, known as the transit.
You can also view detailed visibility information in a dedicated table, including exact rise, transit, and set times for each date.
The graph is structured with the vertical axis showing the hours of the day, ranging from 12 AM to 12 AM the next day, while the horizontal axis spans each day of the year.
The reddish shaded area indicates the periods when the Mercury is above the horizon, visible to observers. The white line marks the times when the celestial object reaches its highest point in the sky each day, known as the transit.
You can also view detailed visibility information in a dedicated table, including exact rise, transit, and set times for each date.
Astrometric & Physical Parameters of Mercury
Coordinates & Visibility
| Right Ascension | 23.22438° |
| Declination | -4.08533° |
| Magnitude | -0.6 |
| Constellation | Aquarius |
| Elevation | -56.1° |
| Azimuth | 12.9° |
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 & 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
Our solar system data—including planetary physical and orbital parameters—comes from the Solar System OpenData API , maintained by Le Système Solaire. We thank Christophe and the contributors for making this open data available.