2026, August 28-31: Moon Approaches Saturn Before Sunrise and After Sunset

August 28-31, 2026: Watch the bright Sturgeon Moon approach and pass Saturn before sunrise and after sunset. Follow the changing Moon-Saturn separation.

Jupiter, Saturn, Moon, November 19, 2020
2020, November 19: The crescent moon is 5,4° to the lower left of Saturn, while Jupiter is 3.3° to the lower right of the Ringed Wonder.

by Jeffrey L. Hunt

Venus as an Evening Star

Saturn, Moon

Saturn
Image Caption –
This NASA Hubble Space Telescope photo of Saturn reveals the planet’s cloud bands and a phenomenon called ring spokes.

The bright Sturgeon moon is in the sky nearly all night. Watch the moon approach Saturn either before sunrise or after sunset.

As the moon begins to wane, its light is still bright enough to illuminate the ground for a nighttime walk.

Whether a morning or evening sky watcher, this lunar approach toward Saturn is easy to watch. In the accompanying diagrams note the line that the moon appears to follow. In the morning, it makes a high angle with the western horizon, while after sunset it is flattened toward the horizon. This is the ecliptic. On late-summer mornings, the angle is high in the western sky while it is shallow in the evenings. The moon’s evening place from night to night previews the Harvest Moon Effect. Near the autumnal equinox, the lunar orb is in the sky after sunset and rises only a short time later each evening, traditionally helping farmers harvest their autumn crop.

Saturn is at opposition, when Earth is between the planet and the sun, on October 4. Now rising about 90 minutes after sunset, it appears near the Full moon for a few lunations.

Morning Highlights

Saturn, Moon, August 28-31, 2026
Chart Caption – 2026, August 28-31: The moon approaches and passes Saturn before sunrise.

Here are the highlights one hour before sunrise:

Saturn is nearly 45° above the southwest horizon.

  • August 28: On the night of the Full Sturgeon moon eclipse, the lunar orb is nearly 15° above the west-southwest horizon, over 35° to Saturn’s lower right.
  • August 29: The bright moon, 98% illuminated, is over 25° above the west-southwest horizon and nearly the same distance to Saturn’s lower right.
  • August 30: Nearly 40° above the southwest horizon, the moon, 95% illuminated, is over 10° to Saturn’s lower right.
  • August 31: The moon, 89% illuminated, is 50° above the southwest horizon and 7.0° to Saturn’s upper right.

Evening Highlights

Saturn, Moon, August 28-31, 2026
Chart Caption – 2026, August 28-31: Three hours after sunset, the moon approaches and passes Saturn.

Here is what to see three hours after sunset:

Golden Saturn is 15° up in the east. Not as bright as Venus or Jupiter, it is brighter than all the stars in the region.

  • August 28: One night after the Full phase and the lunar eclipse, the moon, 99% illuminated, is nearly 30° above the southeast horizon, and over 25° to Saturn’s upper right.
  • August 29: The moon, 96% illuminated, is 25° above the east-southeast horizon and less than 15° to Saturn’s upper right.
  • August 30: The 90% lit moon is over 20° above the east horizon, 5.5° to Saturn’s upper left.
  • August 31: The waning moon, 83% illuminated, is 15° above the east horizon and 15° to Saturn’s left.

Either before sunrise or after sunset, watch the moon approach and pass Saturn.

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