July 3, 2025: Explore the morning sky, as Earth reaches aphelion. Discover Venus, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune visible before sunrise, with tips for observing these distant planets. Includes specific celestial alignments and binocular viewing guidance.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:21 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:29 p.m. CDT. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program.
Related Articles
Venus Summary Article
VENUS AS A MORNING STAR, 2025
Earth Farthest from Sun
Earth is at aphelion today, the farthest point from the sun on the terrestrial orbit. This occurs at 2:55 p.m. Central Time. Earth is 94.5 million miles from the sun.
Earth’s path around the sun is slightly out of round – about 1.7% – and not a perfect circle. Our planet is closest to the central star, known as perihelion, on January 3rd, 2026.
Morning Star Venus
This morning four planets are in the eastern sky before sunrise. Brilliant Venus is “that bright star” in the east an hour before daybreak. It steps eastward in front of Taurus, 6.9° to the lower right of the Pleiades star cluster and 11.8° to the upper right of Aldebaran, the Bull’s brightest star.
Topaz Aldebaran is making its first morning appearance across the mid-northern latitudes. It is challenging to distinguish from the reds and oranges of approaching sunrise. Use a binocular to initially see this star and the Pleiades.
Binocular View: Planet Uranus
Venus is 2.7° to the lower right of planet Uranus, which is barely visible to the unassisted eye in remote locations. Through a binocular, place Venus near the lower right edge of the field of view and the star cluster to the upper left. Appearing as a blue-green star, Uranus is near the middle of the field, with 13 Tauri (13 Tau on the chart) and 14 Tauri (14 Tau) to the upper right. The former star is blue-white, while the latter is yellow-white. Uranus is about the same brightness as this stellar duo.
If possible, look for Uranus earlier during twilight. The planet is in the same binocular field with the star cluster, until they disappear into brighter evening twilight next spring. Many opportunities will present themselves to see the planet with the star cluster on moonless nights, even from suburban areas.
Saturn in Southeast
At this hour, Saturn is less than halfway up in the southeast. It is dimmer than its average brightness because its rings are tilted so that we see them more from the edge. They reflect light away from Earth, making the planet appear dimmer to us.
The star Deneb Kaitos, Cetus’ tail, is about halfway from the southeast horizon to the Ringed Wonder.
Faint Neptune is near Saturn
Look for Neptune at least two hours before sunrise when the sky is darkest and twilight is about to begin. At this season, that is early for sky watchers at the eastern edges of time zones.
Neptune is very dim, fainter than the limit of human eyesight. To see the planet may take multiple mornings, depending on clarity of the sky, until the bright moon is in the sky beginning about July 13th. Search again after the moon approaches the waning crescent phase and then is out of the sky again for about two weeks.
Place Saturn at the center of the binocular field of view. At this level of magnification, the planet resembles a golden star. The stars 27 Piscium (27 Psc on the chart) and 29 Piscium (29 Psc) are to the right of the Ringed Wonder. Notice their colors. Star 29 is distinctly blue-white while 27 is yellow-white. After Saturn, they are the brightest stars in the field, though they are only 0.02% Saturn’s intensity.
Neptune is 1.0° to Saturn’s upper left, less than half the distance from Saturn to the star 29. The modern solar system’s most-distant planet appears as a faint bluish star. Until the bright moon is present, Saturn guides the way to Neptune. Saturn does not move much from morning to morning.
Saturn’s slow orbital motion keeps it in the same binocular field with Neptune until early February 2026. During February 2028, Venus passes by when Neptune is visible two hours after sunset. Before moving farther eastward, the Evening Star stays in the same binocular field with Neptune for only 12 nights.
As the major planets in the solar system congregate in the morning sky, regularly attempt to look for Uranus and Neptune on moonless nights through a binocular. Their identification will take some practice aiming and focusing the binocular as well as slowly searching the field of view to see these distant worlds.
During mid-August, six planets – Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune – are in the sky before sunrise, although not simultaneously. By the time Mercury is visible, Uranus and Neptune are washed out by brighter morning twilight.
Mars remains the lone major planet in the western sky until later in the year. It reaches solar conjunction early next year and begins a climb into the eastern morning sky.
Currently, look for Venus, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune in the eastern sky before sunrise.
LATEST ARTICLES
- 2026, May 11-15: Venus Between Taurus’ Horns as it Closes in on Jupiter
May 11-15, 2026: Venus passes between Taurus’ horns, Elnath and Zeta Tauri, while closing the gap to Jupiter in the western sky after sunset. - 2026, May 10-13: Moon–Saturn Conjunction, Crescent Moon Guides First Morning View of Saturn
May 10-13, 2026: On May 13, the crescent moon appears near Saturn before sunrise. Use the moon as a guide to find the Ringed Wonder low in the eastern sky. - 2026, May 9: Last Quarter Moon and Evening Planets, Venus Moves Between Taurus’ Horns Toward Jupiter
May 9, 2026: See the Last Quarter moon before sunrise and track Venus moving between Taurus’ horns as it closes in on Jupiter in the western evening sky. - 2026, May 8: Double Moon Shadows on Jupiter: Venus Shines Nearby in Tonight’s Evening Sky
May 8, 2026: See the shadows of Europa and Ganymede crossing Jupiter’s cloud tops while brilliant Venus shines lower in the western sky after sunset. - 2026, May 7: Venus and Jupiter Dominate May Evenings While a Gibbous Moon Visits Sagittarius
May 7, 2026: Track Venus and Jupiter in the western sky after sundown and find the gibbous moon in front of Sagittarius before sunrise during May evenings.