2025, July 13: Venus-Aldebaran Conjunction, Saturn’s Retrograde Begins, Bright Morning Moon

July 13, 2025: This morning, look for the Venus-Aldebaran conjunction before sunrise.  Saturn begins to retrograde in front of Pisces. Bright moonlight interrupts the view of dimmer planets.

Venus and Aldebaran, July 11, 2020
2020, July 11: Brilliant Venus appears 1.0° to the upper left of the star Aldebaran. The Pleiades star cluster appears above Venus.

by Jeffrey L. Hunt

Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:28 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:25 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 AS A MORNING STAR, 2025

Daylight Decreases

Sunrise over a lake.
Photo Caption – Sunrise, July 3, 2022.

Daylight is slowly decreasing.  At Chicago’s latitude it is three minutes less than 15 hours long.

Venus-Aldebaran Conjunction

morning sky has pretty celestial events
Chart Caption – 2025, July 13: Venus passes Aldebaran, Taurus’ brightest star before sunrise.

This morning Venus passes Aldebaran, Taurus’ brightest star.  An hour before sunrise, the brilliant planet is nearly 20° above the eastern horizon.  It outshines all other stars in the sky.  In this bright moonlight, look for topaz Aldebaran, 3.2° to Venus’ lower right.

Binocular View

Binocular View - Venus-Aldebaran conjunction
Chart Caption – 2025, July 13: Through a binocular find Venus, Aldebaran and the Hyades star cluster.

Through a binocular, position the Morning Star off-center toward the upper left in the field of view.  Aldebaran is below the center.  The Hyades star cluster is off to the right.  Together the star and the stellar bundle make the V of Taurus, outlining the Bull’s head.  Gamma Tauri (γ Tau on the chart) is the point of the shape, while Epsilon Tauri (ε Tau) is at the top, opposite Aldebaran.  This morning Venus is 1.0° to Epsilon’s lower left.  Yesterday, a Venus-Epsilon conjunction occurred.

During the next several mornings, watch Venus move away from Taurus and the star cluster.  On the 21st, the crescent moon appears with Venus and the constellation’s brighter stars.

Moonlight Too Bright

This is an image of the planet Uranus taken by the spacecraft Voyager 2 in 1986. The Voyager project is managed for NASA by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Photo Caption – This is an image of the planet Uranus taken by the spacecraft Voyager 2 in 1986. The Voyager project is managed for NASA by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Planet Uranus is near Venus, but not in the same binocular field of view.  Look for it when the moon is dimmer than this morning.

Saturn in South-Southeast

Saturn, July 13, 2025
Chart Caption – 2025, July 13: Saturn is in the south-southeast at one hour before daybreak.

This morning, Saturn is halfway up in the south-southeast.  Considerably dimmer than Venus, it is in front of Pisces.  It is brighter than most stars in the sky this morning.

Saturn’s Retrograde Begins

Saturn Retrogrades
Chart Caption – 2025, July 13-November 27: Saturn retrogrades.

Saturn begins the illusion of retrograde.  Normally, the planets appear to move eastward against the distant starfield. When Earth begins to overtake a distant world, to pass between the sun and it, the planet seems to stop moving eastward and begins to appear to move westward or retrograde. The line of sight from Earth to Saturn moves backward compared to distant stars.  After Earth passes by, the world resumes its eastward or direct motion.

As Saturn retrogrades, it is opposite the sun from Earth on September 20th.  Retrograde ends on November 27th.  During these 137 days, Earth moves 135° along its orbital path, while Saturn only moves 5°.  The Ringed Wonder takes nearly 30 years to revolve around the sun and seems to move along the ecliptic and against the background stars.

Neptune’s View Overwhelmed by Moonlight

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 is in the same region with Saturn, but nearly impossible to see in this moonlight and at this level of morning twilight.  Look for it in over a week when the moon is at the crescent phase.

Morning Gibbous Moon

Morning Moon, July 13, 2025
Chart Caption – 2025, July 13: One hour before sunrise, the bright moon is nearly 30° above the south-southwest horizon and to the lower right of Deneb Algedi, Capricornus tail.

The bright moon, 93% illuminated, is nearly one-third of the way from the south-southwest horizon to overhead.  It is only 2.4° to the lower right of Deneb Algedi, Capricornus’ tail, and 40° to the lower right of Saturn.  Watch the moon approach Saturn during the next few mornings.

Thirty minutes before daybreak, bright Jupiter is 5.0° above the east-northeast horizon. It can be seen through a binocular after a persistent search.  Wait a few more mornings to look for it.

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