April 7, 2026: The gibbous moon appears near Antares before sunrise, while Venus and Jupiter dominate the evening sky after sunset.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:23 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:23 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
From Chicago’s latitude, daylight spans 13 hours.
Moon, Venus, Jupiter
Three bright solar system bodies are visible during the nighttime hours. The gibbous moon in the sky after midnight until after sunrise. Brilliant Venus and Jupiter shine after sunset.
Morning Gibbous Moon
An hour before daybreak, the gibbous moon, 75% illuminated is in the southern sky. At this level of moonlight take along a binocular. The lunar orb is in front of Ophiuchus and 7.3° to the lower left of Antares, Scorpius’ brightest star. Through the binocular trace the Scorpion’s body and tail from Antares toward the horizon to the lower left. The horizon the tail curves higher ending at the tail and stinger, marked by Shaula and Lesath.
Venus after Sunset
After sunset, brilliant Venus shines in the western sky, appearing farther north along the horizon from week to week mirroring the sun’s northerly movement during northern hemisphere spring months. The Evening Star is visible by 30 minutes after sunset. Tonight, it sets nearly two hours after sundown.
By 45 minutes after sunset, the planet is over 10° above the western horizon. Unlike other celestial bodies, brilliant Venus is easily viewable through the twilight.
Through a telescope, the planet is relatively small, it is nearly 100 million miles. It displays an evening gibbous phase, 92% illuminated.
Venus steps eastward in front of Aries, heading toward a conjunction with Jupiter in two months. This evening the Jovian Giant is high in the southwest, 66° to Venus’ upper left. Venus closes the gap by about 1° each evening.
Jupiter with Gemini
Jupiter rambles eastward in front of the Gemini Twins, Castor and Pollux. It passes Castor in a wide conjunction on May 11 followed by a Pollux conjunction on May 28.
During the night, Jupiter and the Gemini starfield are farther westward, setting in the west-northwest about four hours before sunrise.
Look for the moon before sunrise and the two brightest planets after sunset. Watch Venus close in on Jupiter during the next two months.
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