August 13, 2026: The Perseid meteor shower peaks while Venus brightens after sunset, Mars marches in front of Gemini, Jupiter emerges from solar conjunction, and Saturn is in the southern sky.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:57 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
Perseid Peak
The Perseid meteor shower peaks again this morning between midnight and the beginning of morning twilight. Look high in the east-northeast. Maximum rates under dark rural skies are about 60 meteors per hour, while brightly lit urban locations may see 10–20 meteors per hour.
Almanac for Sun, Moon, and Planets
Sun, Moon
Sun: At Chicago’s latitude, daylight lasts 13 hours, 56 minutes, compared to 13 hours, 3 minutes in Miami. Farther northward in Anchorage, sunlight spans 16 hours. Daylight decreases by nearly six minutes each day there, where only daylight and twilight occur. On August 28, darkness returns for 48 minutes and steadily lengthens until the winter solstice. The sun is overhead at local noon at latitude 14° north. South of the equator in Auckland, daylight lasts 10 hours, 38 minutes, compared to 13 hours, 35 minutes in Nashville. Both cities are nearly equidistant from the equator.
Moon: Yesterday, the moon reached the New phase, beginning lunation 1282, the number of lunar cycles since the count began over a century ago. This was accompanied by a total solar eclipse visible from the Arctic, Greenland, Spain, and the ocean regions between them. Moving into the western evening sky, the moon sets about 35 minutes after sunset. Tomorrow evening, look for it very low in the western sky at 45 minutes after sunset. Its visibility during the early waxing crescent phase sequence is affected by the shallow angle the ecliptic, or plane of the solar system, makes with the western horizon. In two evenings, the lunar crescent appears near Venus.
Inner Planets
Mercury: The planet retreats into brighter morning twilight after its greatest elongation over a week ago. At 45 minutes before sunrise, the Elusive Planet is about 5° above the east-northeast horizon and nearly as bright as Sirius. Use a binocular to initially locate the planet. Mercury speeds into morning twilight and reaches superior conjunction on August 27. It then moves into the western evening sky for a poorly visible apparition from the mid-northern latitudes, while appearing considerably higher in the evening sky for the southern hemisphere.
Venus: The Evening Star is in the west-southwest after sunset. It steps eastward in front of Virgo, 17° to Spica’s lower right, the constellation’s brightest star. A Venus–Spica conjunction occurs on September 1. Watch the planet close the gap to the star. Venus reaches greatest elongation in two evenings. Through a telescope, Venus appears as a thick evening crescent. It is noticeably farther southward along the horizon, mirroring the changing sunset azimuth. Like the waxing crescent moon, Venus’ visibility is affected by the low angle the ecliptic makes with the western horizon.
Bright Outer Planets
Mars: After crossing the Gemini border yesterday, the Red Planet marches eastward in front of Gemini near Castor’s foot. An hour before sunrise, it is over 30° above the eastern horizon. Mars is 2.7° to Propus’ upper right, the Twin’s toe. The planet is dimmer than might be expected because it is over 180 million miles away. It brightens throughout the year as Earth closes its distance before opposition early next year. Through a binocular, find Messier 35, 0.7° to Mars’ left.
Jupiter: The Jovian Giant emerges from bright morning twilight after its recent solar conjunction. This morning it is 3° to Mercury’s lower left. Jupiter is easier to see in about a week, low in the east-northeast before sunrise.
Saturn: The solar system’s show piece is over halfway up in the south-southwest sky. It is brighter than all the stars in its region. The Ringed Wonder retrogrades in front of Pisces against a dim starfield. Saturn rises about two hours after sunset and is high enough for telescopic observing by local midnight. Earth passes between Saturn and the sun on October 4, when the planet is visible throughout the night and nearest to Earth.
Far Outer Planets
Uranus: The Tilted World fits into the same binocular field as the Pleiades star cluster, although the view is snug. At the beginning of morning twilight, about two hours before sunrise, the stellar bundle is over 50° above the eastern horizon. Resembling a tiny dipper, it is often first seen with peripheral vision. Before looking for Uranus, examine the cluster through a binocular. Next, shift the binocular so the cluster is near the top of the field. Stars 37 and 39 Tauri (37 Tau and 39 Tau) are below and slightly left of center. Star 39 Tauri is about the same brightness as aquamarine Uranus near the bottom of the field. Shift the binocular again so the reference stars are above center. Uranus is 2° below them. Do not confuse it with Omega Tauri, about the same brightness as 37 Tau and 3° below the reference stars. The dimmer Uranus is over halfway from 37 Tauri toward Omega Tauri.
Neptune: The Distant Planet is about 10° west of Saturn in front of an unremarkable starfield. At the beginning of morning twilight, it is over halfway from the southern horizon to overhead. Through a binocular, it fits into the same field as 44 Piscium (44 Psc) and 10 Ceti (10 Cet). The planet is best seen with averted, or peripheral, vision. This is a very challenging observation.
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