Planets, good from here
Venus at its best as the morning star
Venus reaches greatest western elongation, 47 degrees from the Sun, and blazes in the east before dawn.
- When
- Sunday, 3 January 2027, 19:56 CAT
- Best time
- 04:15 to 05:00 CAT on Sunday, 3 January 2027
- Where to look
- East, before dawn
- From Zimbabwe
- Good from here. An hour before sunrise in early January, Venus is about 29 degrees up in the east.
Venus is at its brightest, magnitude −4.9, in late November 2026, and reaches its greatest angle from the Sun on 3 January 2027. Through December and January it is the brightest point of light in the sky before dawn, impossible to miss. A small telescope shows it as a half-lit disc, like a tiny quarter Moon.
Tips for watching
Look east about an hour before sunrise. If you have a telescope, view Venus in twilight, when its glare is less dazzling.
Times are Central Africa Time, worked out for Harare; other towns in Zimbabwe differ by a few minutes. Source: Computed for Harare with Astronomy Engine.