Every planetary retrograde in 2026
- 11 retrograde periods touch 2026, across 7 bodies.
- Retrograde motion is apparent, not physical: no planet reverses its orbit.
- The outer planets spend close to half of every year retrograde; Mercury manages about three weeks at a time, three times a year.
Retrograde periods touching 2026 (UTC)
| Planet | Turns retrograde | Turns direct | Days | Retrograde arc |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uranus | Sep 6 04:41 | Feb 4 02:17 | 151 | 1°28' Gemini → 27°28' Taurus |
| Jupiter | Nov 11 16:45 | Mar 11 03:26 | 119 | 25°09' Cancer → 15°05' Cancer |
| Mercury | Feb 26 06:46 | Mar 20 19:34 | 23 | 22°34' Pisces → 8°29' Pisces |
| Pluto | May 6 15:44 | Oct 16 02:23 | 162 | 5°31' Aquarius → 3°04' Aquarius |
| Mercury | Jun 29 17:37 | Jul 23 22:57 | 24 | 26°15' Cancer → 16°19' Cancer |
| Neptune | Jul 7 11:20 | Dec 12 22:13 | 158 | 4°25' Aries → 1°37' Aries |
| Saturn | Jul 26 19:57 | Dec 10 23:23 | 137 | 14°45' Aries → 7°56' Aries |
| Uranus | Sep 10 18:40 | Feb 8 12:23 | 151 | 5°42' Gemini → 1°41' Gemini |
| Venus | Oct 3 07:09 | Nov 14 00:20 | 42 | 8°29' Scorpio → 22°52' Libra |
| Mercury | Oct 24 07:15 | Nov 13 15:52 | 20 | 20°59' Scorpio → 5°02' Scorpio |
| Jupiter | Dec 13 00:58 | Apr 13 02:13 | 121 | 27°01' Leo → 17°00' Leo |
Days retrograde per body, and share of the year
| Planet | Periods | Days retrograde | Share of year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | 3 | 67 | 18% |
| Venus | 1 | 42 | 12% |
| Jupiter | 2 | 240 | 66% |
| Saturn | 1 | 137 | 38% |
| Uranus | 2 | 302 | 83% |
| Neptune | 1 | 158 | 43% |
| Pluto | 1 | 162 | 44% |
Why the outer planets retrograde for so long
A planet appears retrograde while Earth is overtaking it, or being overtaken by it, on the inside of the orbit. The slower the planet moves against the background, the longer that overtaking takes to play out - so Pluto and Neptune, which crawl, spend around 40% of every year in apparent retrograde, while Mercury, which is quick, is retrograde for only about 20 days at a time.
The share-of-year column makes the pattern plain. It is a geometric consequence of orbital speed, nothing more: the periods are set by the synodic cycle between Earth and the other planet, and they recur on a fixed schedule you can compute centuries ahead.
What the arc column means
The arc is the stretch of ecliptic longitude the planet re-covers. It moves forward through those degrees, turns back over them, then turns again and crosses them a third time. The whole passage takes far longer than the retrograde itself, which is why the same degrees stay in play for months around an outer-planet station.