2026, May 4: Eight Brightest Stars Visible with Venus and Jupiter After Sunset

May 4, 2026: See Venus and Jupiter alongside eight of the brightest stars visible from mid-northern latitudes. A guide to the spring evening sky.

Venus and Elnath, May 15, 2020
2020, May 15: Venus is 1.8° to the lower left of Elnath.

by Jeffrey L. Hunt

Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:43 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:53 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

Spring Stars

Spring Star Map, 2026
Chart Caption 2026, mid-Spring: On this chart the horizon is shown by the circle and overhead is marked by a “+” symbol. Rotate the map so that the direction you are facing is at the bottom. “V” is Venus and “J” marks Jupiter’s location.-

Step outside an hour after sunset. With trees beginning to block the view of celestial bodies near the horizon, find an observing spot with clear horizons in every direction, especially toward the west and east.

Brilliant Venus and Jupiter continue to dominate the western evening sky. As spring’s midpoint approaches, during evening twilight, eight of the ten brightest stars are visible from the mid-northern latitudes. In order of brightness, this group is: Sirius, Arcturus, Vega, Capella, Procyon, Betelgeuse, Aldebaran, and Spica.

Some Stellar Properties

Here are some characteristics of those stars:

Star NameBrightness
(mid-northern latitudes)		ColorDistance (light years)Luminosity compared to sun
Sirius1Blue-white8.620
Arcturus2Yellow-orange37110
Vega3Blue-white2550
Capella4Yellow-white43132
Procyon6Yellow-white11.510
Betelgeuse7Red-orange50010,000
Aldebaran9Yellow-orange67160
Spica10Blue-white2509,800

In the West

An hour after sunset, find Venus in the west-northwest to the upper right of Aldebaran, the follower. Venus is brightest, but not a star. Slightly fainter Jupiter is about halfway from the west horizon to overhead, to Venus’ upper left. Blue-white Sirius, the Dog Star, twinkles wildly low in the west-southwest, at nearly the same altitude – height above the horizon – as Venus.

Red-orange Betelgeuse, marking Orion’s shoulder, is slightly higher than Venus above the west horizon.

Sirius and Betelgeuse disappear into bright evening twilight during the next few weeks, returning to the eastern morning sky later during the summer.

Jupiter is below the Gemini Twins. Pollux ranks 12th on the list.

Capella, the little she goat, is to the right of Jupiter and also to Venus’ upper right, while Procyon, the Little Dog Star, is to Jupiter’s lower left. Capella, Castor – the other Twin – Pollux, and Procyon are along an imaginary arc.

In the East

Farther eastward, golden Arcturus – the bear guard – is over halfway up in the east, while Spica – the ear of corn – is low in the southeast. Vega, Lyra’s brightest star, is about 10° above the northeast horizon. During the next several weeks, it is joined by Altair and Deneb. Together they are known as the Summer Triangle which appears in the eastern sky at nightfall near the summer solstice.

Notice Regulus, high in the southern sky and 15th on the list, is Leo’s brightest star.

While the mid-winter sky has many bright stars tightly grouped, mid-spring’s sky has many bright stars that are more widely spaced.

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