September 21, 2025: Saturn reaches opposition after midnight, shining all night as Earth passes between it and the sun. Before sunrise, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune span the sky in a rare five-planet display.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:37 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 6:49 p.m. CDT. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times.
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Today’s Astronomy Highlights
- Saturn at opposition: Earth is between Saturn and the sun at 12:46 a.m. The Ringed Wonder is nearly 795 million miles away.
- New Moon: The lunar cycle (lunation 1271) begins at 2:54 p.m. Central Time. This count of lunar cycles has continued for over a century.
- Partial solar eclipse: Near the time of the New Moon, the moon eclipses the sun over the South Pacific, parts of Antarctica, and New Zealand. Maximum coverage (86%) occurs at 19:42 UTC.
Before Sunrise
Beginning about two hours before sunrise, five planets are visible. Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn—the three brightest—span nearly 155° from east-northeast to west-southwest. Neptune is near Saturn, while Uranus is high in the south near the Pleiades. The Venus-Saturn opposition occurs on October 17. Afterward, Saturn sets before Venus rises, leaving two bright planets before sunrise, along with dimmer Uranus.
- Two hours before sunrise, Saturn stands over 20° high in the west-southwest.
- Use a binocular to find Neptune above Saturn. Look before the sky brightens and during early twilight.
- Farther east, Uranus shares a binocular field with the Pleiades star cluster, high in the southern sky. The cluster resembles a tiny dipper on Taurus’ back in celestial art.
- Appearing aquamarine through a binocular, Uranus is similar in brightness to the stars 13, 14, 32, and 37 Tauri (Tau).
- As dawn approaches, Venus and Jupiter climb higher in the eastern sky. The Morning Star is over 15° above the east horizon, 2.2° to Regulus’ lower left. This gap widens each morning after the close Venus-Moon-Regulus groping two mornings ago.
- Jupiter, over 40° to Venus’ upper right, marches slowly eastward in front of Gemini, 7.1° to Pollux’s lower right, one of the Twins.
After Sunset
- Mercury and Mars remain hidden in bright western twilight. Mercury is emerging from superior conjunction, though its evening appearance is poor for northern hemisphere observers. Mars slides toward solar conjunction during the first week of the new year.
- Saturn, at opposition, rises in the east near sunset. An hour later, it is more than 10° above the east-southeast horizon. Through the night it arcs westward, standing above the southern horizon after midnight and low in the southwest before tomorrow’s sunrise. Starting two hours before sunrise, all five planets are visible again.
Five planets shine during the predawn hours, while Saturn—at opposition—remains visible all night.
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