July 23, 2025: The waning crescent moon appears near Jupiter. Venus sets is sights on Jupiter. Stellar heliacal risings occurring.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:36 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 8:18 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 Summary Article
Venus in East
Step outside an hour before sunrise. Mid-twilight is full of colorful hues of approaching daybreak. “That bright star” in the east is Venus. Each morning it steps eastward in front of Taurus. It is the centerpiece of three dynamic cycles this morning: heliacal risings, moon phases, and planetary motion.
Stars prominent after sunset during the winter months are making their first morning appearances or heliacal risings.
Heliacal Risings
Bright Capella first appeared in the eastern morning sky about two months ago. One hour before sunrise, it is over one-third of the way from the northeast horizon to overhead. It is the fourth brightest star seen by sky watchers at the mid-northern latitudes.
Aldebaran, 11.5° to Venus’ upper right, Taurus’ brightest star, first appeared at the beginning of the month. This morning it is one-fourth of the way from the east horizon to overhead.
Two bright stars are nearing their heliacal risings. Castor, one of the Gemini Twins, is near the northeast horizon. Look for it through a binocular. Betelgeuse, Orion’s shoulder, is near the east horizon.
Blue-white Castor appears first because it shines through the reds and oranges of mid-twilight, while Betelgeuse blends with those hues. The heliacal rising occurs when the star is first visible without optical assistance.
Tomorrow from latitude 20° north, Sirius makes its first morning appearance under ideal weather conditions. The rising date advances about 4 days for every 5° of increasing northern latitude. At the more southerly latitudes, Orion is already higher in the sky, while at more northerly latitudes, Castor is higher.
Jupiter and Moon
As you look along the horizon, through a binocular, find the razor-thin crescent moon, 5.3° to the left of bright Jupiter, which is easily visible a little higher in the sky than Castor and Betelgeuse.
Lunation is Ending
The lunar crescent is ending lunation 1268, the number of lunar cycles since the count began over a century ago. The new cycle begins tomorrow at 2:11 p.m. Central Time. The moon first appears in the western evening sky on the 26th.
From the northern latitudes, the ecliptic, the plane of the solar system, makes a low angle with the western horizon. The moon makes a low arc across the western and southwestern sky during the several evenings after it returns.
Venus-Jupiter Conjunction, August 12th
Venus overtakes Jupiter at a rate of about 1°, two moon diameters, from morning to morning. This morning the gap between them is less than 19°. Their conjunction occurs on August 12th.
Venus passes the star Zeta Tauri, Taurus’ southern horn, in three mornings. This morning the brilliant planet is 4.1° to the star’s upper right.
Watch the dynamic sky in east. Look for the moon’s final appearance of this lunation. Each morning, watch the gap close between Venus and Mars. Look for Castor and Betelgeuse make their first morning appearances.
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