July 25, 2026: The waxing gibbous moon passes above Shaula and Lesath, Venus dominates the western sky, Saturn nears retrograde motion, and Mars advances toward Taurus’ horns.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:38 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 8:16 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
Sky Highlights
- Gibbous Moon Above Cat’s Eyes
- Brilliant Venus
- Saturn Easy to See
- Mars Nears Bull’s Horns
Gibbous Moon, Cat’s Eyes
After sunset, the bright gibbous moon, 89% illuminated, is nearly 20° above the south-southeast horizon in front of Ophiuchus and above the Cat’s Eyes, Shaula and Lesath, the stellar pair at the Scorpion’s tail.
Shaula, the brighter star, is about 700 light years away, while Lesath is about 200 light years closer. Intrinsically, Shaula shines with the intensity of about 5,700 suns, while Lesath shines with about 20% of that intensity. In the sky, Lesath is 36% of Shaula’s visual intensity. The two stars appear close together at the Scorpion’s tail even though they are separated by hundreds of light years. Their close appearance gives them the look of glowing eyes at the Scorpion’s tail.
Venus
Brilliant Venus, brighter than all the stars, dominates the western evening sky. An hour after sunset, it is 10° above the horizon. The planet is noticeably lower than it was a month ago. At this season, the ecliptic, the plane of the solar system, intersects the western horizon at a decreasing angle, causing Venus to appear lower in the sky at the same interval after sunset. The Evening Star steps eastward against Leo, over 12° below Denebola, the Lion’s tail.
Saturn
Before sunrise, golden Saturn is in the south-southeast. Rising before local midnight, the Ringed Wonder is 45° above the southeast horizon when morning twilight begins. Its rings are excellent telescope targets before the sky brightens, although they remain visible at mid-twilight — an hour before sunrise — when the planet is in the south-southeast. Saturn begins retrograde motion tomorrow night, appearing to move westward against Pisces’ dim starfield.
Mars
Mars is farther eastward, marching against Taurus toward the Bull’s horns. Use a binocular to find it 25° above the eastern horizon. It is not as bright as Aldebaran, the Bull’s brightest star, 10° to the upper right, or Betelgeuse near the horizon. Mars is now noticeably closer to the Bull’s horns than Aldebaran. The Red Planet continues toward Elnath and Zeta Tauri, passing between the horns early next month.
After sunset, observe the moon and Venus, while Saturn and Mars are easy targets before sunrise.
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