July 4, 2024: Before sunrise, the crescent moon appears near the Bull’s northern horn as if it were gored. Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn are visible during morning twilight.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:22 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 8:29 p.m. CDT. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program.
Here is today’s planet forecast:
Morning Sky
Jupiter, Moon
This morning three bright planets and a thin crescent moon are visible before daybreak. At one hour before sunrise, bright Jupiter is over 10° above the east-northeast horizon and 4.9° to the upper left of Aldebaran, Taurus’ brightest star. Jupiter passes the star on the 10th. The Jovian Giant is higher in the sky each morning at this time interval before sunrise.
Do not confuse Jupiter with Capella, over 20° above the northeast horizon and over 25° to Jupiter’s upper left. Jupiter is distinctly brighter than the star, nearly seven times brighter.
Mars, marching eastward in front of Aries, is over 25° above the east horizon. It is moving toward a conjunction with Jupiter on August 14th. This morning the gap between them is over 20°.
Gored Moon
Look carefully for the razor-thin crescent moon, 3% illuminated, over 5° above the horizon and 16.0° to Jupiter’s lower left. Use a binocular to spot Elnath, Taurus’ northern horn, less than 2° above the lunar crescent.
The moon’s location is a precarious place in celestial artwork. It appears to be gored by the Bull’s horn.
Saturn
At this hour Saturn is in the south-southeast. Not as dazzling as Jupiter, the Ringed Wonder is brighter than most stars in the sky this morning. Rising before local midnight, Saturn is nearly halfway up in the sky in the south-southeast in front of Aquarius starfield, above Deneb Kaitos, Cetus tail, and Fomalhaut, the mouth of the Southern Fish.
Through mid-autumn, use a binocular to watch it retrograde against the dim starfield.
Evening Sky
Venus
Setting only 34 minutes after the sun, Venus slowly makes its way into the evening sky. Its appearance is hampered by a low angle the plane of the solar system makes with the western horizon at this season.
Mercury
Similarly, Mercury’s visibility is challenged by the geometry and the season’s lengthen period of evening twilight. At 30 minutes after nightfall, Mercury is over 7° above the west-northwest horizon. Appearing as a bright star through evening’s colorful palette, use a binocular to locate the speedy planet. Mercury dims each evening. Perhaps the best evening to find the planet occurs on the 7th, when the crescent moon begins a new lunation after sunset in the western sky.
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