May 31, 2026: Venus, Jupiter, and Mercury line up in the western sky after sunset while Venus rapidly closes the gap to Jupiter before their June 9 conjunction.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:19 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 8:19 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
Venus, Jupiter, and Mercury form an eye-catching diagonal line in the western sky after sunset as Venus rapidly closes the gap to Jupiter before their June 9 conjunction.
Look for Venus Early
Step outside about 30 minutes after sunset and look across a clear horizon toward the west-northwest. As the third brightest celestial body in the sky, Venus shines through bright twilight from about 20° above the western horizon. During early twilight, it commands the western sky and immediately draws attention. As darkness falls, Venus appears lower in the west-northwest.
Bright Jupiter is 8.6° to Venus’ upper left. The planets are too far apart to fit into the same binocular field, but Jupiter can be located by placing Venus near the lower right edge of the field and slowly moving the binocular toward the upper left. Jupiter then appears as a bright star. Under a very clear sky, the Jovian Giant might be visible without optical aid during this stage of twilight, although it is easier to locate as the sky darkens.
Jupiter, Mercury a Little Later
Fifteen minutes later, Jupiter is easily visible without optical aid. At this time, look for Mercury through the binocular. It is less than 10° above the west-northwest horizon. Noticeably dimmer than Jupiter, Mercury is visible without optical aid once identified. This is the best interval to view the three planets before Mercury disappears into the thicker air near the horizon about 80 minutes after sunset.
One hour after sunset, Mercury is 5.0° above the horizon. Brilliant Venus is over 16° to the upper left. The three planets span nearly 25°, creating a striking lineup across the western sky as Venus steadily closes the gap to Jupiter each evening.
June 9 Conjunction
Venus overtakes Jupiter leading to their June 9 conjunction. Night after night, the changing separation is easy to notice. Mercury joins the display low along the horizon, adding another bright point to the evening planet lineup before it sinks into brighter twilight.
Evening Moon
Tonight, the bright Blue Moon is in the southeastern sky. Two hours after sunset, while Venus and Jupiter are lower in the west-northwest, the lunar orb is less than 10° above the southeast horizon, 9.5° to Antares’ lower left, Scorpius’ brightest star.
The Scorpion stretches westward as it crawls across the southeastern horizon during late spring evenings.
Before Sunrise
Earlier this morning, the Blue Moon was low in the southwest, 1.2° below Antares one hour before sunrise. Use a binocular to locate the star near the bright moon.
Farther eastward, Saturn is over 15° above the eastern horizon. The Ringed Wonder is higher each morning, although its rings are still blurred by thicker air near the horizon.
Watch the changing planet display in the western sky after sunset as Venus overtakes Jupiter while Mercury climbs into view.
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