August 2, 2025: Venus and Jupiter, the two brightest planets, approach a close conjunction before sunrise on August 12. Track their progress and see Mars, Saturn, and the moon in the night sky.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:46 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 8:07 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
Countdown to Conjunction
Step outside and look eastward at one hour before sunrise. At mid-twilight, two bright stars are there. Venus is brighter and higher in the sky. Jupiter, noticeably dimmer than the Morning Star, but brighter than the rest of the stars this morning, is to the lower left. They are the two brightest planets and the third and fourth brightest celestial bodies that regularly appear in the night sky.
Venus, moving eastward faster than Jupiter, overtakes and passes the Jovian Giant on the 12th. At their conjunction they are separated by 0.9° less than two full-moon diameters. Set an alarm to view this spectacular conjunction of these gleaming worlds.
Both planets are moving in front of Gemini’s star fields. The Twins, Castor and Pollux, are over 13° to Jupiter’s lower left.
Beginning this morning and lasting through the 22nd, Venus and Jupiter are less than 10° apart.
This morning Venus is 1.3° to the upper right of Propus, Castor’s toe. A binocular helps with the view.
Saturn
Farther southward, Saturn is about halfway from the south-southwest horizon to overhead. Considerably dimmer than Venus and Jupiter, Saturn retrogrades in front of Pisces’ dim stars. Look for Deneb Kaitos, Cetus’ tail, and Fomalhaut, the mouth of the Southern Fish, below the Ringed Wonder.
Mercury Moves Into Morning Sky
After its inferior conjunction between Earth and Sun two days ago, Mercury races into the morning sky. It reaches greatest elongation on the 19th. At mid-month it is in the morning sky with Venus, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn, though when the speedy planet is visible, the sky is too bright to see Uranus and Neptune. The dimmer worlds can be found through a binocular before twilight begins.
Evening Moon with Scorpius
After sundown, the bright gibbous moon, 65% illuminated, is over 20° above the south-southwest horizon. It is over 12° to the lower right of Antares, Scorpius’ brightest star. The lunar orb is 5.3° to the right of Pi Scorpii (π Sco on the chart). Use a binocular to see the stars.
Mars-Zavijava Conjunction
Farther westward, dim Mars is 10° up in the west. It passes 0.1° to the lower right of Zavijava, also known as Beta Virginis. Look at this conjunction through the binocular.
Spica, Virgo’s brightest star, is over 25° to Mars’ upper left and nearly 35° to the moon’s lower right.
Saturn rises over two hours after sunset and less than 15 minutes after Mars sets. Tonight, the moon sets over four hours after sundown.
Each morning note Venus’ position as it overtakes Jupiter leading up to their conjunction in 10 mornings.
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