The sky this year
The 2026 Vedic transit calendar, computed date by date
One table, every major movement of the year, each date taken from the ephemeris rather than another website. Bookmark it and check the sky against your own chart as the year turns.
The year in one paragraph
The spine of 2026 is Jupiter exalted in Cancer from 2 June to 31 October, with Saturn walking Pisces all year and retrograde from 26 July to 11 December. The nodes change signs on 6 December, Rahu into Capricorn and Ketu into Cancer. Four eclipses fall in February, March, and August, and none of the four is visible from India, so sutak applies to none of them there. Mercury retrogrades three times and Venus once, in October and November.
The full calendar
| Date, 2026 | Event | Computed position |
|---|---|---|
| 17 February | Annular solar eclipse, not visible from India | Sidereal Aquarius |
| 26 February | Mercury stations retrograde | 28°20' Aquarius |
| 3 March | Total lunar eclipse, not visible from India | Sidereal Leo |
| 11 March | Jupiter stations direct | 20°51' Gemini |
| 21 March | Mercury stations direct | 14°16' Aquarius |
| 2 June | Jupiter enters Cancer, exalted | 0° Cancer |
| 29 June | Mercury stations retrograde | 2°01' Cancer |
| 24 July | Mercury stations direct | 22°05' Gemini |
| 26 July | Saturn stations retrograde | 20°31' Pisces, Revati |
| 12 August | Total solar eclipse, not visible from India, no sutak | 25°48' Cancer, Ashlesha |
| 28 August | Partial lunar eclipse, not visible from India | 10°37' Aquarius, Shatabhisha |
| 3 October | Venus stations retrograde | 14°15' Libra |
| 24 October | Mercury stations retrograde | 26°44' Libra |
| 31 October | Jupiter enters Leo | 0° Leo |
| 13 November | Mercury stations direct | 10°47' Libra |
| 14 November | Venus stations direct | 28°37' Virgo |
| 6 December | Rahu enters Capricorn, Ketu enters Cancer | Mean nodes |
| 11 December | Saturn stations direct | 13°41' Pisces, Uttara Bhadrapada |
| 13 December | Jupiter stations retrograde | 2°47' Leo |
Positions are sidereal under the Lahiri ayanāṁśa. Station dates are given for UTC; an event near midnight can land a calendar day later for India.
The three movements that shape the year
Jupiter's exaltation is the headline, five months of the zodiac's kindest placement, written up fully in its own guide. Saturn's Pisces year keeps Aquarius, Pisces, and Aries Moons in sade sati throughout, with the retrograde re-crossing 13°41' to 20°31' three times, covered in the retrograde guide and the sade sati guide. And the node change of 6 December moves the eclipse axis to Capricorn and Cancer, which sets where the eclipses of 2027 will fall and shifts Rahu's appetite to a new house of every chart.
The eclipse honesty note
All four eclipses of 2026 pass outside India's sky. By the classical visibility rule that means no sutak applies in India for any eclipse this year, temples following the standard rule stay open, and no meal or ceremony needs rearranging. Sites quoting Indian sutak timings for these eclipses are quoting timings for something that cannot be seen. The August pair is read fully in the eclipse guide.
Common questions
What is the biggest transit of 2026?
Jupiter exalted in Cancer from 2 June to 31 October, with the node change of 6 December a close second because it repositions the eclipse axis into 2027.
Which eclipses need sutak in India?
None this year. All four fall outside India's sky, and sutak follows visibility.
When is Mercury retrograde in 2026?
26 February to 21 March, 29 June to 24 July, and 24 October to 13 November, sidereal positions in the table above.
What does the Venus retrograde mean?
From 3 October to 14 November, Venus revisits Libra and Virgo. Tradition reads it as a season to repair and reconsider relationships and finances rather than to launch them, and weddings are usually timed around it where custom allows.