March 11, 2025: Venus is quickly disappearing from the evening sky and beginning to appear as the Morning Star before it passes between Earth and Sun, a Venus double play.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 7:09 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 6:53 p.m. CDT. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program.
Four Planets after Sunset
Four bright planets – Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, and Mars – are visible after sunset, along with the gibbous moon. Mercury and Venus are quickly leaving the evening sky. Tomorrow evening, Mercury passes Venus in a wide conjunction.
Venus Double Play
Venus is quickly overtaking our planet, passing between Earth and the sun, known as inferior conjunction on the 22nd. The planet is north of the solar system’s plane, passing over 8° above the Earth-Sun line that forms the ecliptic when it zips between the two.
Beginning today, Venus rises at sunrise and by the 22nd, it already rises 38 minutes before the sun. Venus aficionados can pick it up to the north of the sunrise point on that morning. By month’s end, Venus rises 64 minutes before the sun and can be seen 30 minutes before sunrise in the eastern sky.
With some skill, it is possible to see Venus shortly after sunset and after sunrise on the 15th – a Venus double play.
During the next 11 days, Venus loses nearly 70 minutes of setting time. It disappears from the evening sky relatively quickly.
Venus and Mercury Tonight
Tonight, at 45 minutes after sundown, Venus is less than 10° up in the western sky, considerably lower than at the beginning of March. Bright Mercury, in the same binocular field with Venus, is 5.6° to the Evening Star’s lower left.
Mercury retreats into evening twilight, passing between Earth and the sun two days after Venus.
Jupiter in Southwest
Bright Jupiter, rambling eastward in front of Taurus, is high in the southwestern sky, 6.0° above Aldebaran, the Bull’s brightest star. It is moving toward the horns, Elnath and Zeta Tauri. The Jovian Giant passes between them during May.
Mars and Gemini
Mars, high in the southeastern sky, marches eastward in front of Gemini, 6.1° to Pollux’s right and 7.2° to Castor’s lower right. The Red Planet passes these stars in wide conjunctions this month, Castor on the 21st and Pollux 10 nights later.
Moon and Regulus
The bright gibbous moon, 95% illuminated, is less than halfway up in the east-southeast. 3.7° to Regulus’ upper right, Leo’s brightest star.
The four planets and the lunar orb span nearly 140° along the plane of the solar system and six zodiacal constellations from Pisces to Leo.
Don’t Miss the Venus Double Play
Be sure to look for Venus and Mercury before they leave the sky. At mid-month, look for the Venus double play before sunrise and after sunset.
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