The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — May 1970
Highlights this month
- 3SunSaturn in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (9:10am)
- 6WedEta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 50/hr). A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 9SatMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (6:18pm)
- 21ThuNeptune at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Libra (mag 7.8). (9:25am)
- 22FriMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (12:51am)
- 30SatMercury and Saturn in conjunction — 2° apart. (1:52pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 1 | 7:01am | 5:33pm | 10h 32m | 7:02pm | 5:31am |
| Sun 10 | 7:09am | 5:23pm | 10h 14m | 6:54pm | 5:38am |
| Wed 20 | 7:18am | 5:15pm | 9h 57m | 6:47pm | 5:45am |
| Sun 31 | 7:26am | 5:08pm | 9h 42m | 6:42pm | 5:52am |
Days shorten by about 50 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonWed 6, 12:50am
- First QuarterWed 13, 8:25pm
- Full MoonThu 21, 1:46pm
- Last QuarterThu 28, 8:36am
Apogee 13 May (404,700 km) · Perigee 25 May (368,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Ari | 4.8 | 6:29am | 11:43am | 4:57pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Tau | −3.7 | 9:30am | 2:11pm | 6:51pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Tau | 1.7 | 9:15am | 1:57pm | 6:39pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Vir | −2.2 | 4:03pm | 10:35pm | 5:12am | Evening |
| Saturn | Ari | 0.1 | 6:21am | 11:38am | 4:55pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.4 | 3:02pm | 9:08pm | 3:18am | Evening |
| Neptune | Lib | 7.8 | 5:37pm | 12:44am | 7:46am | All night |
Meteor showers
- Eta Aquariids — peaks 6 May, radiant in Aquarius (up to 50/hr). Debris of Halley's Comet and one of the best showers of the year from the south — swift meteors in the pre-dawn eastern sky. A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — May 1970
Evening sky Morning sky Up much of the night Lost in the Sun’s glare
Open the full interactive orrery ↗ — fast-forward, pick any date, toggle the Moon and more.
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Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 24 August 2026.