Venus

Venus is the brightest object in the night sky after the Moon. When it’s visible, you can’t miss it - a brilliant white “star” that outshines everything else. At its brightest, Venus reaches magnitude -4.7, bright enough to cast faint shadows and visible in broad daylight if you know where to look. Like Mercury, Venus is an inner planet, so it never strays far from the Sun. You’ll only see it in the evening sky after sunset (as the “evening star”) or in the morning sky before sunrise (as the “morning star”). It alternates between these roles over its 584-day cycle of appearances.

Unlike Mercury, Venus gets high enough above the horizon to be easy to observe. During favorable elongations, it can be visible for 3-4 hours after sunset or before sunrise, giving you plenty of time to set up and observe comfortably.

What You Can See

Venus shows dramatic phases, just like the Moon. When it’s far from Earth (near superior conjunction, on the far side of the Sun), it appears nearly full and small - about 10 arcseconds across. As it moves closer to Earth, it grows larger but shows a thinner crescent. At its closest (near inferior conjunction, between Earth and the Sun), Venus can appear over 60 arcseconds across - larger than Jupiter - but as a very thin crescent.

This size-phase relationship is striking. You’re watching a world orbit the Sun, seeing it change shape and size as it moves. It’s the same phenomenon Galileo observed in 1610, proving that Venus orbits the Sun, not Earth.

That’s where the good news ends. Venus is covered in thick clouds. You won’t see surface features, craters, or any detail except the phase. Occasionally, observers report subtle shading in the clouds - faint dusky markings - but these are difficult to see and require excellent seeing conditions and UV or violet filters. Venus is bright, featureless, and honestly a bit boring to look at for more than a few minutes. But the phases alone make it worth checking in on periodically.

When and How to Observe

Venus is visible for several months at a time as either an evening or morning object. Check an app or magazine to see which phase it’s currently in. The best time to observe is during evening elongations if you prefer observing after dark, or morning elongations if you’re an early riser. Venus climbs high enough above the horizon that atmospheric turbulence is less of a problem than with Mercury.

Use moderate magnification - 50x to 100x is plenty. Higher magnification just makes the brightness uncomfortable and doesn’t reveal any additional detail. A neutral density filter or polarizing filter cuts the glare and makes viewing more comfortable, especially when Venus is a thin, dazzling crescent.

The Bottom Line

Venus is easy to find, impressive in brightness, and shows beautiful phases. It’s a great target for beginners learning to use a telescope. But beyond the phase, there’s not much to see. You’ll observe it a few times, appreciate the changing crescent, and then probably move on to more interesting targets. Still, Venus holds a special place. It’s our nearest planetary neighbor, and seeing it as an actual world - changing shape as it orbits - drives home the reality of the solar system in a way photos never quite can.