2025, June 3: Nightly Sky Watch – Three Bright Planets, Moon

June 3, 2025:  During Nighttime hours, the moon and three bright planets are visible.  Brilliant Venus and Saturn are in the eastern sky before daybreak, while Mars is in the west-southwest after nightfall.

Venus, Mercury, Saturn
Photo Caption – 2012, December 13: Venus, Mercury and Saturn before sunrise.

by Jeffrey L. Hunt

Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:17 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 8:21 p.m. CDT.  Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program.

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Venus, Saturn in Eastern Sky before Sunrise

Venus, Saturn, June 3, 2025
Chart Caption – 2025, June 3: Before sunrise, Venus and Saturn are in the eastern sky.

Three bright planets and the slightly gibbous moon are visible during the night.  Before sunrise, brilliant Venus and Saturn are in the eastern sky.

Step outside an hour before daybreak. The Morning Star is over 10° above the east horizon.  It steps farther eastward against the starry background, although the immediate region is without bright stars.  Hamal, Aries’ brightest star, is 16.3° to the planet’s upper left. 

Venus crosses the Aries border on the 11th and passes Hamal in a wide conjunction three mornings later.

Through a telescope, Venus displays a slightly gibbous phase, 51% illuminated.

Dimmer Saturn is over 25° to Venus’ upper right.  The Ringed Wonder slowly creeps eastward, considerably slower than Venus. Saturn takes nearly two weeks to move the distance Venus travels in one day.

Neptune near Saturn, though not Visible

This contrast enhanced color picture of Neptune was acquired by Voyager 2 at a range of 14.8 million kilometers (9.2 million miles) on August 14, 1989. (NASA photo)
Photo Caption – This contrast enhanced color picture of Neptune was acquired by Voyager 2 at a range of 14.8 million kilometers (9.2 million miles) on August 14, 1989. (NASA photo)

Neptune appears near Saturn in the sky.  An hour before daybreak, the sky is too bright to see the solar system’s most distant planet, even with optical aid.  Wait until the pair is higher in the sky before morning twilight begins.

Moon with Virgo

Mars. Moon, June 3, 2025
Chart Caption – 2025, June 3: An hour after sunset, Mars and the gibbous moon are southwestern sky.

During the early evening, the slightly gibbous moon, 59% illuminated, is halfway up in the southwest.  In front of Virgo, use a binocular to see the lunar orb, 3.5° to the lower left of Zavijava – also known as Beta Virginis. It is over 13° to Denebola’s lower left, the Lion’s tail.

Nearly 25° to the moon’s west, Mars approaches Regulus, Leo’s brightest star.  The Red Planet is 7.5° to the star’s lower right.  Tomorrow, they fit into the same binocular field.  During the next several evenings, watch Mars approach and pass the star on the 17th.

Jupiter Slips into Evening Twilight

Jupiter
Image Caption – A Hubble Space Telescope view of Jupiter (NASA photo)

Jupiter, slowly disappearing into brighter evening twilight, is low in the west-northwest after sundown.  It is becoming more difficult to see each evening.  It reaches solar conjunction on the 24th and slowly emerges from bright morning twilight.  Venus overtakes and passes the Jovian Giant on August 12th for a pretty conjunction of the brightest planets.

Mercury past Superior Conjunctions

Mercury as Never Seen Before
Photo Caption – Mercury as Never Seen Before. (NASA photo)

Mercury, after its superior conjunction with the sun a few days ago, is emerging from evening twilight.  It reaches greatest elongation in a month.  Tonight, it sets 33 minutes after the sun and about 45 minutes before Jupiter sets.

Mars sets over four hours after sunset and after midnight.  The moon follows about an hour later.

Look for Venus, Saturn, Mars, and the moon during nighttime hours.

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