August 15, 2026: Venus reaches greatest elongation east and appears with the waxing crescent moon in the western evening sky. Watch the Evening Star close in on Spica before their September 1 conjunction.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 5:59 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:51 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
Venus at Greatest Elongation
Venus is at greatest elongation, when it appears farthest from the sun for Earthbound sky watchers.
Brilliant Venus shines from the western sky after sunset during its eastern or evening elongation. The Evening Star appears farthest from the sun, 45.9°. In geometric terms, the Sun–Earth–Venus angle, known as elongation, is largest, giving rise to the term greatest elongation. Venus sets after the sun and appears east of it, creating the evening elongation. The complete term for this event is greatest elongation east. The corresponding morning event is known as greatest elongation west.
Through a telescope, Venus shows a thick evening crescent that is 48% illuminated. The planet brightens from week to week as it closes its distance to Earth, reaching its greatest brilliancy on September 23. Besides the moon, Venus is the brightest object in the evening sky.
Venus in West After Sunset
This evening, the crescent moon, 13% illuminated, joins Venus in the west. The accompanying chart shows the sky in the west-southwest about 45 minutes after sunset. At this season, the plane of the solar system, where the planets and moon move against the background stars, makes a shallow angle with the western horizon, keeping both objects low in the sky. This is why Venus appears surprisingly low despite being at its greatest separation from the sun.
The lunar crescent is less than 6° above the western horizon, about 4° to Venus’ lower right. Venus, stepping eastward in front of Virgo, is 15° to Spica’s lower right, the constellation’s brightest star. Moon, Venus, and Spica span 18.4°.
As the waxing crescent moon climbs higher during the next few evenings, Venus continues to brighten while closing the gap to Spica. A Venus–Spica conjunction occurs on September 1. Watch the Evening Star overtake and pass the star as it continues its eastward motion against the starry background.
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