September 13-14, 2026: The young crescent moon returns to the evening sky near brilliant Venus. Watch the lunar crescent, Venus, and possibly Spica low in the west-southwest after sunset.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:29 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:03 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
Evening Crescent Moon Returns
After the New moon phase three nights ago, the moon returns to the evening western sky near Venus.
The moon began lunation 1283 on September 10. This lunation includes this year’s Harvest Moon. During the early evening hours, the ecliptic – the plane of the solar system – makes a shallow angle with the western horizon. Even with large elongations – angles from the sun – celestial bodies can take a few evenings to reappear because they set during bright twilight.
Highlights
The lunar crescent joins Venus for the final time of the planet’s evening apparition. Here’s what to see 30 minutes after sunset:
- September 13: Brilliant Venus is over 5° above the west-southwest horizon. Find a clear horizon in that direction. The crescent moon, 9% illuminated, is 5.9° to Venus’ lower right. Spica might be visible 8.6° to Venus’ right and 3.8° to the lunar crescent’s upper right. The moon is just above the horizon. The three celestial bodies fit into a circle 8.6° in diameter, but not into the same binocular field of view. The sky is too bright to see earthshine on these evenings.
- September 14: At the same time interval as the previous evening, Venus is again about 5° above the west-southwest horizon, 6.0° to the lunar crescent’s lower right. The moon is 16% illuminated. If Spica is visible, the three celestial wonders span 15.3°. The star is a challenging sight at this level of evening twilight.
After these two evenings, the moon appears in a darker sky and farther eastward.
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