April 19, 2026 Crescent Moon, Sparkling Venus

A waxing crescent moon and a sparkling planet Venus made brilliant companions in the twilight evening sky over Eastern Iowa on Sunday, April 19, 2026. A view of the pair above, captured at 8:31 pm CDT, was located near the sledding hill at Bowman Woods Park in Cedar Rapids, and is a 5 second exposure at f/9, ISO 100, 35mm focal length. 

The cropped image below, captured at 8:32 pm, is a 1.3 second exposure at f/5, ISO 100, 67mm focal length. Venus shone at -3.35 magnitude. "Earthshine" is evident on the moon. Air temperature was 42 degrees F. Nikon Z6ii camera.

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