Knowing when planets are out can be a confusing hassle. While there are definitely apps and websites that can help you figure this out, I personally love visual graphics that are easy to see at a glance exactly what is up in the sky at any given time.
Last week, I was going through the geometric patterning of the planetary cycles and figured out that there will always be at least one planet visible in the sky after sunset now through August 2027, with a one-month break before Saturn returns that autumn.
That led me down a rabbit hole, and I put together a graphic that visually outlines the months each year that the four major visible planets–Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn–are above the horizon beginning at sunset, all the way through December 2030.
I’ve included tips on how to read this graphic on its associated Learning Resources page.
One such important note is that the white gaps between visibility dates DO NOT inherently mean the planet is visible in the morning. I’ve created this, with one small exception, to be when the planets are above 10 degrees up in the east or above 15 degrees up in the west (as they’re entering the glare of the Sun).
I hope a chart like this helps you know when to look for the planets! Let me know if you have any questions or if there are other resources that could help you with stargazing.
This world is beautiful.
Alex
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