July 18, 2026: Follow Venus near Regulus after sunset and locate Saturn, Mars, Uranus, and Neptune before sunrise. Includes moon phases, earthshine, and observing tips.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:32 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 8:22 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
Almanac for Sun, Moon, and Planets
Sun: At Chicago’s latitude, daylight lasts 14 hours, 50 minutes, compared to 13 hours, 34 minutes in Miami. Farther north at Anchorage’s latitude, daylight spans 18 hours, 13 minutes, still with no darkness hours, only daylight and twilight. The sun is overhead at local noon at latitude 21° north. South of the equator in Auckland, daylight lasts 9 hours, 55 minutes.
Moon: The waxing crescent moon, 26% illuminated, is over 20° above the west-southwest horizon and 18° to Venus’ upper left. During these waxing crescent phases, look for earthshine – sunlight reflected from Earth’s features – on the moon’s night portion while the crescent remains thin.
Inner Planets
Mercury: Rising 20 minutes before sunrise, the Elusive Planet is lost in morning twilight. It reaches greatest elongation early next month when it is over 5° above the east-northeast horizon at 45 minutes before sunrise.
Venus: The Evening Star gleams brightly from the western sky during evening twilight, setting 124 minutes after sunset. Venus steps eastward in front of Leo, over 10° to Regulus’ upper left, the Lion’s brightest star. Use a binocular soon after sunset to locate Regulus before it fades deeper into evening twilight and approaches solar conjunction on August 23. Venus brightens nearly 20% during the month as its distance to Earth closes. Tonight, Venus is about 84 million miles away. Through a telescope, it shows an evening gibbous phase, 62% illuminated.
Bright Outer Planets
Mars: An hour before sunrise, the Red Planet is over 20° above the east-northeast horizon and 6.5° to Aldebaran’s upper left, Taurus’ brightest star. The planet is not as bright as might be expected. Its brightness varies greatly because it is only half Earth’s size. This morning it is over 190 million miles away. Mars marches eastward in front of Taurus heading toward the horns, Elnath and Zeta Tauri. As an aside, Orion begins to make its morning appearance. One of its shoulders, Bellatrix, is nearly 5° above the east horizon and over 15° below Aldebaran. Orion’s return to the morning sky signals the approaching change from summer toward autumn’s predawn observing patterns. Each week more stars are visible. Use a binocular to watch the Hunter’s reappearance.
Jupiter: The Jovian Giant nears solar conjunction on the 29th. It is lost in evening twilight, setting 35 minutes after sunset.
Saturn: The Ringed Wonder rises nearly six hours before the sun, appearing halfway from the southeast horizon to overhead during morning twilight. It creeps slowly eastward in front of Pisces. Saturn begins to retrograde in about a week. Sky watchers with telescopes can see its rings before morning twilight begins when the planet is nearly 40° above the southeast horizon, as well as during mid-twilight. The rings remain tilted about 10°, making them easy to identify through a telescope.
Distant Outer Planets
Uranus: The Tilted World is in the same binocular field with Taurus’ Pleiades star cluster. After inspecting the stellar bundle, adjust the binocular so that it appears at the top of the field. Locate 37 and 39 Tauri (37 Tau and 39 Tau) just below the center of the field. Star 39 is about the same brightness as aquamarine Uranus toward the bottom of the field. If necessary, shift the binocular downward slightly so the reference stars are higher in the view and the planet is toward the center. Depending on the clarity of the sky, the planet may not be visible at this level of morning twilight.
Neptune: The Distant Blue World is the most difficult to see. The very faint planet is in front of a dim Pisces starfield 10° to Saturn’s upper right. It fits into the same binocular field of view as 27 and 29 Piscium (27 Psc and 29 Psc). Begin at Saturn and move one binocular field toward the upper right to locate Neptune’s region. Its visibility is affected by outdoor lighting, moonlight, and twilight. Even under the best observing conditions, use averted or peripheral vision to see the far blue world.
Look for the moon and brighter planets, and attempt to see Uranus, while Neptune is a challenge.
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