February 25, 2024: Spot bright Jupiter after sunset in the west-southwest. The Jovian Giant is the easiest bright planet to see.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:32 a.m. CST; Sunset, 5:36 p.m. CST. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program.
Summaries of Current Sky Events
Summary for Venus as a Morning Star, 2023-24
Here is today’s planet forecast:
Morning Sky
Morning Moon
The bright gibbous moon, 99% illuminated, is about 20° up in the west at one hour before daybreak. The lunar orb is in front of Leo, over 15° to Regulus’ upper left, and nearly 12° below Denebola.
Venus
Venus is more difficult to spot each morning before sunrise, primarily from obstructions near the horizon. The planet rises sixty-two minutes before daybreak, and by forty minutes before the new day begins, it is less than 5° above the horizon.
Because of the planet’s brightness, it can be tracked into brighter twilight. The accompanying photograph shows the planet eleven days after its inferior conjunction in 2020 when it rose only fifty minutes before sunrise.
Venus reaches superior conjunction during early June and then climbs into the western evening sky. The Evening Star makes a slow reappearance into brighter twilight. On August 5, Venus, the crescent moon, and the star Regulus easily fit into the same binocular field of view
In contrast dimmer Mars is slowly climbing into the morning sky after its solar conjunction during November 2023. Venus passed by three days ago. Both planets are moving eastward through their solar orbits.
Mars’ brightness varies widely from that of a somewhat-bright star to brighter than Jupiter when it is closest to the sun, perihelion, and Earth is at its closest to Mars.
Venus and Mars
While it is not far from Venus in the sky this morning, Mars is not easily visible without the optical assist of a binocular. Find them in the east-southeast at thirty minutes before daybreak. Mars is 1.6° to the upper right of the Morning Star. The gap between them widens each morning as Venus steps away from the Red Planet.
Fast-moving Mercury nears superior conjunction in three days. This occurs when it passes on the far side of the sun and begins to move into the evening sky. During late March the speedy planet puts on the year’s best evening display for northern hemisphere sky watchers.
Evening Sky
Saturn reaches solar conjunction on the 28th, the same day as Mercury’s inferior conjunction. The planet then slowly reappears in the eastern morning sky during early spring.
Spot Bright Jupiter After Sunset
Bright Jupiter is about halfway up in the west-southwest as darkness falls. Currently, it is the easiest bright planet to see, outshining all other stars in the sky this evening.
The Jovian Giant slowly moves eastward in front of Aries. It approaches an imaginary line from the star Hamal to Menkar. Jupiter sets over five hours after sunset and before midnight.
Evening Moon
The evening gibbous moon, 98% illuminated, rises in the east about ninety minutes after sundown. Thirty minutes later, it is nearly 10° above the eastern horizon and 10.9° to the lower right of Denebola, the Lion’s tail. During the night, the moon appears farther westward, shining from the western sky before sunrise.
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