September 28, 2026: The Harvest Moon shines near Saturn while Jupiter and Mars brighten the predawn sky. Venus and Mercury remain low after sunset as Saturn approaches opposition.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:45 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 6:37 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
Almanac for Sun, Moon, and Planets
Sun, Moon
Sun: The central star’s light shines directly south of the equator. The sun is overhead at local noon at 2° south latitude. In Chicago, daylight spans 11 hours, 52 minutes compared to 11 hours, 58 minutes in Miami. Farther north in Anchorage, the sun is in the sky for 11 hours, 40 minutes. Even in the northern hemisphere, more southerly latitudes receive more daylight during autumn and winter than more northerly cities. South of the equator, Auckland’s daylight spans 12 hours, 20 minutes, compared to 11 hours, 55 minutes in Nashville. Both cities are nearly equidistant from the equator.
Moon: Two nights after the Full Harvest Moon, the lunar orb is in the eastern sky, providing ample moonlight for evening outdoor activities. Two hours after sunset, the moon, 93% illuminated, is over 15° above the eastern horizon, 26° to Saturn’s lower left, and 6.2° to Hamal’s lower right, Aries’ brightest star.
Inner Planets
Mercury: The Elusive Planet nears greatest elongation on October 12, but its visibility suffers from the shallow angle the ecliptic – the plane of the solar system – makes with the western horizon after sunset. At 20 minutes after sunset, Mercury is 3° above the west-southwest horizon and over 10° to the upper right of brilliant Venus. It sets 43 minutes after sunset. With some persistence, it might be visible through a binocular on an exceptionally clear evening.
Venus: The Evening Star continues to slide into bright evening twilight. When looking for Mercury, Venus is about 3° above the west-southwest horizon. It is bright enough to be seen at this level of twilight. Find a clear horizon in their direction and take along a binocular. Venus is quickly overtaking Earth, passing between our planet and the sun on October 23. After conjunction, it rapidly moves into the east-southeastern sky during morning twilight.
Bright Outer Planets
Jupiter and Mars are in the eastern sky before sunrise. While Saturn and the bright moon are in the western sky, bright Jupiter is over 30° above the eastern horizon and 11° to Regulus’ upper right, Leo’s brightest star. The planet is brighter than all the stars in the sky this morning, including Sirius, the night’s brightest star. The Jovian Giant rambles eastward in front of Leo.
Mars is over halfway from the east-southeast horizon to overhead and less than 20° to Jupiter’s upper right. It marches eastward in front of Gemini, 8.7° to Pollux’s lower right, one of the Twins. As Mars moves toward opposition next year, it is overtaking Jupiter before their conjunction on November 16.
Saturn: The Ringed Wonder approaches opposition, when Earth passes between the planet and the sun on October 4. It is in the sky nearly all night, in the east after sunset, south around local midnight, and west before sunrise. Saturn retrogrades in front of a faint Cetus starfield. As opposition nears, Saturn is at its brightest, although it is only about 15% of Jupiter’s visual intensity, showing the dominance of Jupiter’s brightness this morning. Through a telescope, Saturn’s rings are tilted slightly with the southern hemisphere in direct view. Its largest moon, Titan, is to the west of the planet. Look for Rhea to the north.
Faint Outer Planets
Uranus: The Tilted World is visible through a binocular near the Pleiades star cluster, although the bright moonlight veils the dimmer stars. The planet is high in the southern sky before morning twilight begins. Better viewing nights are ahead after the moon wanes to a thinner crescent phase.
Neptune: The Distant Blue World is about 10° west of Saturn. It is quite faint and barely seen through a binocular. Like Uranus, darker skies are ahead when the moon wanes further.
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