September 3, 2026: The moon appears near the Pleiades before sunrise while Venus remains close to Spica after sunset. Saturn shines nearly all night, and Jupiter and Mars continue their morning display.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:19a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:21 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
Today’s Highlights
- Morning Moon Near Pleiades
- Jupiter, Mars Before Sunrise
- Venus Steps Away From Spica
- Saturn Shines Nearly All Night
Morning Moon Near Pleiades
Before sunrise in the Americas, the gibbous moon, 60% illuminated, is high in the south-southeast. Step outside an hour before sunrise with a binocular. The lunar orb is 1.5° to the upper right of Alcyone, the Pleiades’ brightest star.
The lunar orb and the cluster are easily observed through the binocular. It should be noted that through the binocular, the bright moon may produce an afterimage in vision, similar to temporary spots from a camera flash. From Albuquerque, the moon covers the star 18 Tauri (18 Tau), beginning at 6:03 a.m. Mountain Time, 23 minutes later from Denver.
Saturn Shines Nearly All Night
Farther westward, golden Saturn is 40° above the southwest horizon. It slowly appears to move westward in front of a nondescript Pisces starfield.
The Ringed Wonder rises over an hour after sunset, appearing farther westward during the night. Opposition approaches in about a month, when a planet outside Earth’s solar orbit rises at sunset and sets at sunrise. The planet is closest to Earth and at its brightest in the sky.
Through a telescope, the view is toward the planet’s southern hemisphere and rings.
Jupiter, Mars Before Sunrise
Bright Jupiter and Mars are in the eastern sky. The Jovian Giant continues to emerge from bright morning twilight. This morning, find it nearly 15° above the east-northeast horizon an hour before sunrise.
Red-orange Mars — about the same brightness as Castor, one of the Gemini Twins — is less than 30° to Jupiter’s upper right and 40° above the east horizon. It marches eastward in front of Gemini’s starry background, 11° to Castor’s right. Mars overtakes Jupiter on November 16.
Venus Steps Away From Spica
At 45 minutes after sunset, brilliant Venus is low in the west-southwest, 2.2° to Spica’s lower left, Virgo’s brightest star. Find a clear view in that direction. A hilltop or high floor in an elevated structure helps with the view.
Venus reaches greatest brilliancy in nearly three weeks as Spica disappears into evening twilight. During the next several evenings, Venus and Spica remain in the same binocular field.
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