May 8, 2026: See the shadows of Europa and Ganymede crossing Jupiter’s cloud tops while brilliant Venus shines lower in the western sky after sunset.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:38 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:57 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 Planet, Morning Moon
This evening, the shadows of two of Jupiter’s moons move across the cloud tops, while brilliant Venus shines to the lower right. Before sunrise, the moon is in the southeastern sky.
Shadows on Jupiter
Sky watchers with telescopes can see an unusual scene of double shadows on Jupiter’s clouds.
Through a telescope after sunset in the eastern regions of North America, the shadows of Jupiter’s moons Europa and Ganymede are projected on the planet’s cloud tops. This begins at 7:45 p.m. Central Time, before sunset in Chicago. This is visible even as the sun sets, though the sky is brighter farther westward, making Jupiter a challenging find. Ganymede’s shadow leaves the cloud tops at approximately 8:20 p.m. Europa’s shadow leaves at about 10:30 p.m.
After sunset, Jupiter is that bright star less than halfway from the west horizon to overhead. It slowly rambles eastward in front of Gemini, 7.2° to Pollux’ lower left, one of the Twins.
Venus, Taurus
Brilliant Venus is 32° to Jupiter’s lower right, about 15° up in the west-northwest at one hour after sunset. The Evening Star is visible as early as 30 minutes after sundown. As darkness falls, the planet appears in front of Taurus. Tonight, it passes between Aldebaran, 10.3° to the lower left, and Elnath, 6.4° to the upper right.
Aldebaran is the Bull’s brightest star, about 5° above the west-northwest horizon. Use a binocular to see it. Elnath is one of the horns. A Venus–Elnath conjunction occurs in four nights.
Watch Venus move quickly eastward against the starfield. Moving 10 times faster than Jupiter, it overtakes the solar system’s largest planet on June 9.
Morning Moon
Before sunrise this morning, the slightly gibbous moon, 64% illuminated, is over 20° above the south-southeast horizon. The Last Quarter phase occurs tomorrow at 4:10 p.m. Central Time, when the moon is below the horizon in the western hemisphere.
LATEST ARTICLES
- 2026, May 10-13: Moon–Saturn Conjunction, Crescent Moon Guides First Morning View of Saturn
May 10-13, 2026: On May 13, the crescent moon appears near Saturn before sunrise. Use the moon as a guide to find the Ringed Wonder low in the eastern sky. - 2026, May 9: Last Quarter Moon and Evening Planets, Venus Moves Between Taurus’ Horns Toward Jupiter
May 9, 2026: See the Last Quarter moon before sunrise and track Venus moving between Taurus’ horns as it closes in on Jupiter in the western evening sky. - 2026, May 8: Double Moon Shadows on Jupiter: Venus Shines Nearby in Tonight’s Evening Sky
May 8, 2026: See the shadows of Europa and Ganymede crossing Jupiter’s cloud tops while brilliant Venus shines lower in the western sky after sunset. - 2026, May 7: Venus and Jupiter Dominate May Evenings While a Gibbous Moon Visits Sagittarius
May 7, 2026: Track Venus and Jupiter in the western sky after sundown and find the gibbous moon in front of Sagittarius before sunrise during May evenings. - 2026, May 6: Spring Midpoint Sky: Gibbous Moon with Sagittarius, Venus and Jupiter After Sunset
May 6, 2026: At spring’s midpoint, find the gibbous moon with Sagittarius before sunrise and track Venus overtaking Jupiter in the western evening sky.