There are so many stars shining in the sky, so many beautiful things winking at you, but when Venus comes out, all the others are wanted
– Mehmet Murat Ildean, Galileo Galilei

See that bright object in the sky? The brightest one next to the Sun and Moon, it’s not a UFO. It’s the planet Venus.

Sometimes called the Evening Star, Venus reaches greatest elongation east, meaning greatest angular distance between Venus and the Sun, on June 6, making it easy to spot in the hours after sundown. It’s around this time when sightings of UFOs go up as Venus looks like a quarter moon through binoculars and for some reason that’s mistaken as a UFO.

At any rate, Venus is not to be missed at this time. Following June 6, the distance between Venus and the Sun will start to decrease each night as Venus continues its orbit around the Sun and inside Earth’s orbit. Eventually, Venus will become invisible as the Sun’s glare overtakes it.

Pro Tip: For best viewing look for Venus three hours after sundown.