Venus reaches inferior conjunction on October 24, 2026

EarthSky reports that Venus reaches inferior conjunction, when Venus passes between Earth and the Sun, at 4 UTC on October 24 2026. EarthSky notes that 4 UTC corresponds to 11 p.m. CDT on October 23, 2026.

At the instant of inferior conjunction, Venus sits 6.6° south of the Sun within the constellation Virgo. EarthSky notes that inferior conjunction is the moment Venus changes from an evening star to a morning star for every observer. Because Venus remains close to the Sun in daylight, it is unlikely to be seen on the day of conjunction except by experienced telescopic observers.

Keen observers might glimpse Venus through a telescope near the conjunction, when it shines at magnitude –3.9 and presents a crescent 61.12 arcseconds across. EarthSky cautions against viewing Venus close to the Sun unless you have experience observing the Sun.

During inferior conjunction, Venus moves across the daytime sky as a thin crescent near the Sun. Keen observers could spot Venus with a telescope around October 23‐24, 2026, when the planet lies 6.6° south of the Sun.

EarthSky forecasts that Venus will return to the morning sky in mid‐November, shining low in the east 20‐30 minutes before sunrise. By mid‐November Venus is on its way to another peak brightness expected near November 29.

EarthSky describes the 1.6‐year interval after which the Venus‐Sun geometry repeats as seen from Earth as the planet’s synodic period (the time it takes for Venus to return to the same position relative to the Sun as seen from Earth). Five such periods total about eight years, producing similar conjunctions on a roughly eight‐year cycle. This recurrence occurs because Venus orbits the Sun at about 35 km/s while Earth moves at about 30 km/s, allowing Venus to lap Earth every 19.5 months.

EarthSky observes that Venus’s angular distance from the Sun at inferior conjunction has been increasing, making transits uncommon; the June 2020 conjunction, for example, saw Venus pass just a quarter of a degree from the Sun’s disk. The last transits occurred in June 2004 and June 2012. The previous pair was in December 1874 and December 1882. The next transits are predicted for December 2117 and December 2125.

EarthSky points out that youngsters alive now may witness Venus transits in the early 22nd century.