March 19, 2026: Venus and a thin crescent moon share the western twilight sky while Jupiter shines high in Gemini. Here’s how to see them tonight.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:56 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:02 p.m. CDT. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times.
Venus as an Evening Star
Evening Planets
Only two of the five bright planets – Venus and Jupiter – are visible in the night sky. Mercury, Mars, and Saturn, along with the fainter Neptune, are hidden in bright twilight. Mercury and Mars rise before sunrise, while Saturn and Neptune set shortly after sunset.
Venus, Moon
Step outside about 35 minutes after sunset and look westward. Brilliant Venus is less than 10° above the western horizon. If necessary, view it from a hilltop or from a building’s upper floor.
This evening the moon, 1% illuminated, is 6.6° to Venus’ lower right. Use a binocular to spot this razor-thin crescent. Venus and the moon fit into the same binocular field of view.
Jupiter
At the same time, bright Jupiter is high in the southern sky. After Venus, it is the second-brightest starlike body in the night sky. The Jovian giant resembles a bright star, but its atmospheric bands and largest moons are easily visible through a telescope.
Jupiter slowly moves eastward in front of Gemini near the Twins, Castor and Pollux. Use binoculars to watch it close in on the star Wasat for a conjunction on April 30.
Tonight, Jupiter is farther west during the night and sets in the west-northwest nearly four hours before sunrise.
Uranus
The window to spot Uranus during this apparition is closing quickly. The Tilted World is lower in the sky, where thicker air dims and blurs celestial bodies. In addition, the waxing moon’s light interferes with the view. Look for Uranus through binoculars near the Pleiades, the star cluster resembling a miniature dipper, in the west at the end of evening twilight.
Look west after sunset for Venus and the crescent moon. Jupiter is higher in the southern evening sky. Find Uranus before it disappears into the evening twilight.
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