Recent Articles
2022, June 21: Evening Planet Parade Visibility, Summer Solstice
June 21, 2022: How frequently are the five bright planets visible in their order from the sun after sundown? Five the morning planet parade in the eastern sky before sunrise.
2022, June 20: Morning Planet Parade Visibility
June 20, 2022: How frequently are the five bright planets visible in their order from the sun before daybreak? These planets are in this order in the eastern sky before sunrise.
2022, June 19: Planet Order Frequency, Moon Identifies Planets
June 19, 2022: How frequently are the five bright planets in order from the sun to create a morning or evening planet parade. The five planets are in the sky before daybreak.
2022, June 18: Morning Moon, Saturn, Evening Arcturus
June 18, 2022: The moon joins the morning planet parade. Find it near Saturn before daybreak. After sunset, Arcturus is high in the southwestern sky.
2022, June 17: Morning Planet Parade
June 17, 2022: Five bright planets are becoming visible before sunrise. The planets are in order from the sun – Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn.
2022, June 16: Planet Parade, Southern Hemisphere
June 16, 2022: For southern hemisphere observers, the morning planets are in their full parade mode. Northern hemisphere observers continue to wait for Mercury to make its full appearance.
2022, June 15: Teapot Moon, Planets, Evening Summer Stars
June 15, 2022: The morning moon is in front of the Teapot. The morning planet parade continues in the eastern sky before sunrise. As night falls, the Summer Triangle signals that the summer season is arriving north of the equator.
2022, June 14: Double Exposed Moon, Morning Planets
June 14, 2022: The moon is visible before sunrise in the southwest, along with the morning planets in the eastern sky. The lunar orb is visible about two hours after sunset in the southeast.
2022, June 13: Mercury Becoming Morning Planet, Evening Antares, Moon
June 13, 2022: Mercury continues its slow entrance into the morning sky to join the predawn planet parade. After sundown, the bright moon is near Antares
2022, June 12: Early Mercury, Lunar Near Miss
June 12, 2022: Mercury is beginning to enter the morning sky to make a planet parade of the five brightest planets. After sundown, the moon is near the Scorpion’s forehead.
Venus as a Morning Star Gallery 2020-2021
2020, June 14: The crescent Venus appears low in the east-northeast, 25 minutes before sunrise. Welcome back, Venus! 
2020, June 15: Venus appears very low in the east-northeast about 25 minutes before sunrise. 
2020, June 16: Venus is low in the east-northeast during morning twilight. Use a binocular to see its tiny crescent phase. 
2020, June 16: The crescent moon is over 36° to the upper right of Venus. 
2020, June 18: The crescent moon and brilliant Venus appear in the sky during twilight. The moon is 12° to the upper right of the Morning Star. 
2020, June 19: The moon is 1.0° to the lower left Venus during early morning twilight. 
2020, June 19: A close-up in the Venus – Moon conjunction. The moon is 1.0° to the lower left Venus. 
2020, June 22: Venus appears low in the east-northeast about 30 minutes before sunrise. 
2020, June 24: Brilliant Venus is visible in the east-northeast about 25 minutes before sunrise. 
2020, June 25: Venus appears above the trees in the the east-northeast, about 45 minutes before sunrise. 
2020, June 26: Venus appears low in the east-northeast about 25 minutes before sunrise. 
2020, June 28: Brilliant Venus shines from low in the east-northeast among the stars of Taurus during morning twilight. The Pleiades appear above the planet. 
2020, June 29: Brilliant Venus shines from low in the east-northeast about an hour before sunrise. The star Aldebaran and the Pleiades star cluster are visible with a binocular. 
2020, July 1: Venus shines from low in the east-northeastern sky. No stars this morning because of an overcast sky. 
2020, July 2: Venus shines from the east-northeast during morning twilight. It is 0.9° to the upper right of δ1 Tauri. 
2020, July 3: Venus is 0.6° to the upper right of Delta1 Tauri (δ1 Tau) and 3.7° to the upper right of Aldebaran. 
2020, July 4: Nearly 11° in altitude in the east-northeast, Venus is 3.4° to the upper right of α Tau and 0.4° to the right of δ1 Tau. 2020, July 4: Jupiter 2.3° below 56 Sagittarii (56 Sgr), while Saturn is 3.2° to the lower right of Sigma Capricorni (σ Cap) 
2020, July 5: Venus, nearly 12° up in the east-northeast, is 3.1° to the upper right of Aldebaran, 0.8° to the lower right of δ1 Tau, and 0.3° to the lower right of δ2 Tau. The Pleiades star cluster is nearly 11° above Venus. 
2020, July 6: Venus appears inside the “V” of Taurus, 0.5° below Delta1 Tauri (δ1 Tau) and 2.7° to the upper right of Aldebaran. 
2020, July 7: Venus is part of a line that starts at Aldebaran and ends at δ1 Tau. It is 0.6° to the lower left of δ2 Tau. 
2020, July 9: Brilliant Venus is among the stars of the Hyades star cluster, 1.6° to the upper right of Aldebaran. The Pleiades star cluster appears higher in the sky. 
2020, July 11: Brilliant Venus appears 1.0° to the upper left of the star Aldebaran. The Pleiades star cluster appears above Venus. 
2020, July 13: Venus, Aldebaran, Hyades, Pleiades appear in the early morning sky. 
2020, July 13: Venus appears 1.2° to the left of Aldebaran. 
2020, July 14: Venus, Moon, and Mars span nearly 62° in the eastern morning sky. 
2020, July 14: Venus is 1.6° to the left of Aldebaran. The Pleiades star cluster appears above the pair. 
2020, July 20: In the east, brilliant Venus shines from among the stars of Taurus, 5.1° to the lower left of the star Aldebaran. The Hyades star cluster and Pleiades star cluster are nearby. 
2020, July 20: Venus and Mercury shines from the eastern sky. Mercury is over 23° to the lower left of the brilliant planet. 
2020, July 23: Venus and Mercury shine from the eastern sky during bright morning twilight. Mercury is nearly 24° to the lower left of Venus. 
2020, July 23: Brilliant Venus, among the stars of Taurus, is 7.3° to the lower left of Aldebaran. The Hyades star cluster and Pleiades star cluster appear nearby. 
2020, July 24: Mercury and Venus shine from the eastern sky this morning about an hour before sunrise. Mercury is 24° to the lower left of brilliant Venus. 
2020, July 25: Venus in Taurus. The planet continues to move eastward among the stars. It is moving toward ζ Tau. This morning it is 6.5° to the upper right of ζ Tau and 8.6° to the lower left of Aldebaran. 
2020, July 26: In Taurus, brilliant Venus is morning eastward toward Zeta Tauri (ζ Tau). This morning Venus is 5.8° to the upper right of the star. 
2020, July 28: Venus, in the constellation Taurus, is 4.3° to the upper right of Zeta Tauri (ζ Tau), the Southern Horn of the Bull. 
2020, August 5: Venus is 1.1° to the upper right of the star Chi1 Orionis (χ1 Ori) and 3.3° below Zeta Tauri (ζ Tau), the Southern Horn of Taurus. 
2020, August 7: Venus is 0.9° below Chi1 Orionis (χ1 Ori) and 1.4° to the upper right of Chi2 Orionis (χ2 Ori). 
2020, August 8: Brilliant Venus is 0.5° to the upper right of Chi2 Orionis (χ2 Ori). 
2020, August 9: Venus is 0.5° below Chi2 Orionis (χ2 Ori). The planet is at its earliest rising time for the next week. 
2020, August 10: Venus is 1.3° to the lower left of χ2 Ori and 2.8° to the lower right of Eta Geminorum (η Gem). 
2020, August 12: Venus is 2.7° to the lower right of Eta Geminorum (η Gem) and 2.5° to the lower right of Mu Geminorum (μ Gem). 
2020, August 14: Venus is 2.5° to the lower right of Mu Geminorum (μ Gem ), 4.6° above Gamma Geminorum (γ Gem), and 0.7° to the upper right of Nu Geminorum (ν Gem). 
2020, August 14, 2020: One day before their close grouping, the crescent moon is 13° to the upper right of Morning Star Venus. Sirius is making its first morning appearance in the east-southeast. 
2020, August 16: Venus and the crescent moon appear in the eastern sky during morning twilight. 
2020, August 16: The brilliant planet Venus is about 12° to the upper right of the crescent moon. Pollux is 6.6° to the left of the lunar crescent. 
2020, August 20: Venus shines with Orion and its bright stars Betelgeuse and Rigel. 
2020, August 20: Venus is 4.8° to the left of Gamma Geminorum (γ Gem) and 3.0° to the upper right of Zeta Geminorum (ζ Gem). 
2020: August 21, 2020: Sirius shines from low in the east-southeast during morning twilight. Brilliant Venus is higher in the sky in the east. 
2020, August 22: Brilliant Venus shines from the eastern sky. It is 1.1° to the upper right of Zeta Geminorum (ζ Gem). Castor and Pollux, the Gemini Twins, are to the lower left. 
2020, August 30: Venus is is to the lower right of Pollux. The planet is 4.2° below Delta Geminorum (δ Gem) and 5.0° to the lower left of Lambda Geminorum (λ Gem). 
2020, August 30: Venus and a bright contingent of bright stars – Castor, Pollux, Procyon, Sirius, Rigel and Betelgeuse appear in the morning sky. 
2020, September 4: Venus moves into Cancer to the lower right of Castor and Pollux, the Gemini Twins. 
2020, September 5: Morning Star Venus appears during twilight with Sirius, Procyon, Orion, and Gemini. 
2020, September 5: Venus – among Cancer’s dim stars – is 9.9° to the lower right of Pollux. 
2020, September 4: Venus moves into Cancer to the lower right of Castor and Pollux, the Gemini Twins. 
2020, September 14: The moon is 5.0° to the lower left of Venus. 
2020, September 14: Through a hazy sky, the moon is 5.0° to the lower left of Venus. 
2020, September 18: Venus is in the east before sunrise. It is 1.4° to the lower left of Omicron Cancri (ο Cnc). 
2020, September 18: Brilliant Morning Star Venus appears with Sirius, Procyon, Castor, Pollux, Betelgeuse and Rigel. 
2020, September 25: Moving eastward in Leo, Venus is 4.8° to the upper left of Omicron Leonis (ο Leo). 
2020, October 1: Brilliant Venus shines from the eastern sky. The planet is stepping eastward in Leo. This morning it is 1.7° to the upper right of Regulus (α Leo) and 0.7° to the lower left of Nu Leonis (ν Leo). 
202, October 5: Venus is 2.9° to the lower left of Regulus and 3.6° to the upper right of Rho Leonis (ρ Leo). Venus is nearly along a line that connects the two stars. 
2020, October 6: Venus shines brightly from the eastern sky before sunrise. This morning it is 4.1° to the lower left of Regulus and 2.5° to the upper right of Rho Leonis (ρ Leo on the chart.) 
2020: October 7: Venus is 5.2° to the lower left of Regulus and 1.3° above Rho Leonis (ρ Leo on the photo). 
2020, October 8: Venus passes 0.5° to the upper left of ρ Leo. 
2020, October 24: Brilliant Morning Star Venus shines from the morning sky in front of the stars of Virgo. It is 1.9° above Beta Virginis (β Vir) and 3.4° to the lower right of Nu Virginis (ν Vir). 
2020, October 28: Brilliant Morning Star Venus is in front of the stars of Virgo, 3.1° to the lower left of Beta Virginis (β Vir on the photo) and 4.6° to the upper right of Eta Virginis (η Vir). 
2020, October 30: Before sunrise, Venus – shining from the east-southeast – is 2.1° above Eta Virginis (η Vir on the photo) and 5.5° to the lower left of Beta Virginis (β Vir). 
2020, November 2: One hour before sunrise, Venus is 4.0° to the upper right of Gamma Virginis (γ Vir) and 1.4° to the lower left of Eta Virginis (η Vir). 
2020, November 7: About 40 minutes before sunrise, Mercury – low in the east-southeast – is 5.1° to the left of Spica. Brilliant Morning Star Venus gleams from higher in the sky. 
2020, November 12: One hour before sunrise, brilliant Venus is 0.3° to the lower left of Theta Virginis (θ Vir) in the east-southeastern sky. The crescent moon is 6.5° above Venus and 2.9° to the lower left of Gamma Virginis (γ Vir). Mercury is 12.9° to the lower left of Venus. Spica is behind clouds. 
2020, November 12: One hour before sunrise, brilliant Venus is 0.3° to the lower left of Theta Virginis (θ Vir) in the east-southeastern sky. The crescent moon is 6.5° above Venus and 2.9° to the lower left of Gamma Virginis (γ Vir). Spica is 6.5° to the lower right of Venus, Mercury is hidden by clouds. 
2020, November 13: Sparkling Venus – nearly 18° up in the east-southeast – is 8.1° to the upper right of the old moon and 5.5° to the upper left of Spica. The lunar crescent is 6.9° to the lower left of Spica and 5.1° above Mercury. 
2020, November 16: Brilliant Venus shines in the east-southeast during morning twilight. It is 3.8° to the upper left of Spica and 13.0° to the upper right of Mercury. 
2020, November 18: Forty-five minutes before sunrise, Venus is 4.3° to the left of Spica in the east-southeastern sky. Mercury is 13.4° to the lower left of Venus. 
2020, November 20: Before sunrise, bright Venus is low in the east-southeast, 5.8° to the lower left of Spica. Mercury is low in the sky. 
2020, November 23: Venus shines from the east-southeast before sunrise. 
2020, November 28: Venus in the morning sky. 
2020, November 29: Before sunrise, Venus is over 16° to the lower left of Spica and 2.8° to the lower left of Lambda Virginis (λ Vir). 
2020, December 1: Venus is 3.3° to the upper right of Zubenelgenubi. 
2020, December 2: One hour before sunrise, Venus is 2.2° to the upper right of Zubenelgenubi . 
2020, December 3: One hour before sunrise, Venus – low in the east-southeast – is 1.3° to the upper left of Zubenelgenubi. 
2020, December 4: Brilliant Venus is 1.4° to the left of Zubenelgenubi. 
2020, December 9, 2020: Venus low in the southeast.
Feature Articles
2022: Venus as a Morning Star
During 2022, Morning Star Venus puts on a magnificent dance with Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and the moon in eastern sky before sunrise. Next Event: Venus, Mars, and the moon gather, January 29, 2022.
2021 – 2022, Venus – Mars Triple Conjunction
During 2021 into 2022, Venus passes Mars three times for a triple conjunction. The first occurs on July 12, 2021. The others occur during early 2022, followed by a close approach of the two planets.
2020: Great Conjunction Slideshow
On December 21, 2020, Jupiter passes Saturn in a conjunction. Because they are infrequent, occurring every 19.6 years, they are called great conjunctions
1623: The Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn
Did anybody observe the Jupiter – Saturn Great Conjunction of 1623? It was the closest until the Great Conjunction of 2020 with Jupiter passes close to Saturn on December 21, 2020.
2020: December 21: The Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn
On December 21, 2020, in a close conjunction, Jupiter passes Saturn in the evening sky This is known as a Great Conjunction. Look toward the southwest about one hour after sunset. The bright “star” is Jupiter. Dimmer Saturn is immediately to the Giant Planet’s upper right.