'Love planet' Venus to shine its brightest on Valentine's Day. Can you see it Indiana?
Call it a cosmic coincidence or a Valentine's Day gift from the heavens. Astronomers say the planet Venus — named after the Roman goddess of love and beauty — will shine its brightest in 2025 on Friday, Feb. 14. That has "romantic date potential" written all over it if your partner happens to enjoy stargazing.
Venus will gain "maximum brilliance" on Valentine's Day this year, according to both Space.com and EarthSky, a stargazing and astronomical website. After mid-February, Venus won't appear as bright in the evening sky until September 2026.
Here's what you need to know.
There's good news and bad news for spotting Venus in the Hoosier state this month. Freezing weather might put a damper on doing anything outdoors Valentine's Day in Central Indiana. An arctic air mass from Canada is bringing cloudy skies with a chance of rain and snow, conditions that are expected to last into the weekend.
Fortunately, February is still the best month to see Venus all year.
"Venus will be very easy to spot this month (in Indiana) even if the clouds stop us from seeing the Roman goddess of Love this Valentine's weekend," said Dr. Aarran Shaw in a message to IndyStar. Shaw serves as director of Holcomb Observatory and teaches Physics and Astronomy at Butler University.
"Venus will reach its greatest brilliancy this weekend, but if clouds do spoil the view, it will still be incredibly bright and easy to spot next week, so not to worry," Shaw said.
Yes, you can see Venus without a telescope; it shines like a beacon. According to NASA, Venus is the third brightest object in the sky after the sun and moon.
Story continues after photo gallery.
That depends on whether it's morning or night. Venus, writes EarthSky, is tethered along by the sun. You can find Venus in the east before sunrise, or west just after sunset. It never appears overhead at midnight.
On Friday, Feb. 14, wait until twilight and gaze westwards. Weather permitting, Venus will be "easy to spot," Shaw said, appearing just above the sunset.
Venus was among several planets the ancient Romans could see shining in the heavens. Here are some quick but incredible facts about our second closest planet to the sun, courtesy of NASA.
Earth's "evil" twin: Venus is called Earth's sister planet, and sometimes referred to as "Earth's evil twin." Venus is similar in size and structure to our planet but has dense toxic gasses as well as surface temperatures hot enough to melt lead.
Exceptionally bright: From Earth, Venus is the brightest object in the night sky after the moon.
Extremely hot: You would think Mercury being closest to the sun would make it the hottest planet in our solar system, but that honor goes to Venus. Its average surface temperatures reach a blistering 870 degrees Fahrenheit.
Runaway greenhouse gasses: Thanks to a thick atmosphere 2,000 times richer in CO2 than Earth, Venus has a runaway greenhouse effect that traps heat from the sun. Venus would be 700F cooler otherwise.
Long days, short years: An odd quirk about Venus, writes NASA, is that it rotates very slowly on its axis but orbits the sun much faster than Earth. One day on Venus lasts 243 Earth days. Its year, however, is only 225 Earth days long.
Venus stinks: Although named after the Roman goddess of love, Venus is permanently shrouded in thick, toxic clouds of sulfuric acid, which smell like rotten eggs.
Female names: Venus is the only planet in our solar system named after a female goddess. Most features on the planet's surface are named after real and mythological women, such as the Ishtar Terra and a crater honoring English author Beatrix Potter. There's a canyon named after Diana, the Roman goddess of the hunt and a volcanic crater bearing the name Sacajawea.
Stargazers in Central Indiana unfortunately will be getting the cold shoulder from the weather Friday on Valentine's Day. The National Weather Service in Indianapolis forecasts increasing clouds throughout the day with a high of 35, resulting in snow, then rain before 4 a.m.
On Friday night, a low of 31 is expected with wind gusts of up to 20 mph and an 80% chance of precipitation.
Hoosier stargazers in Central Indiana will have to be patient. NWS forecasts mostly cloudy skies with a chance for rain and snow well into next week. According to AccuWeather, the Indianapolis area might have clear skies Thursday, Feb. 20. Wear a warm jacket if you plan on stargazing. The low Thursday night is expected to slip into the single digits.
The following free astronomy apps can help you locate stars, planets, and constellations.
SkyView Lite for iPhone | Google Play
Star Walk 2 for iPhone | Google Play
Star Chart for iPhone | Google Play
for iPhone | Google Play
More about the full moon: When every full moon shines in 2025. Dates, times and the history behind each name.
John Tufts covers trending news for IndyStar and Midwest Connect. Send him a news tip at JTufts@Gannett.com. Find him on BlueSky at JohnWritesStuff.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Venus shines brightest in February 2025 on Valentine's Day
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