The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — July 1972
Highlights this month
- 8SatThe Moon passes Saturn — 5° apart. (9:57pm)
- 9SunVenus is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (12:11pm)
- 11TueVenus and Saturn in conjunction — 5° apart. (6:13am)
- 11TueMercury at greatest evening elongation (26° from the Sun, mag 0.4) — best evening apparition. (9:20am)
- 13ThuThe Moon passes Mercury — 1° apart. (6:27am)
- 24MonThe Moon passes Jupiter — 2° apart. (2:44am)
- 24MonMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:35am)
- 30SunSouthern Delta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 25/hr). A bright 82% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 30SunAlpha Capricornids meteor shower peaks (up to 5/hr). A bright 82% Moon interferes badly this year.
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 7:37am | 5:10pm | 9h 33m | 6:45pm | 6:03am |
| Mon 10 | 7:36am | 5:15pm | 9h 39m | 6:49pm | 6:02am |
| Thu 20 | 7:31am | 5:22pm | 9h 51m | 6:55pm | 5:58am |
| Mon 31 | 7:22am | 5:31pm | 10h 08m | 7:02pm | 5:51am |
Days lengthen by about 36 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterTue 4, 1:31pm
- New MoonTue 11, 5:40am
- First QuarterTue 18, 5:49pm
- Full MoonWed 26, 5:27pm
Perigee 8 Jul (365,000 km) · Apogee 20 Jul (404,900 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Leo | 0.6 | 8:53am | 2:10pm | 7:28pm | Evening |
| Venus | Tau | −4.5 | 4:58am | 10:01am | 3:05pm | Morning |
| Mars | Cnc | 1.8 | 8:40am | 1:40pm | 6:41pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Sgr | −2.4 | 3:29pm | 10:50pm | 6:16am | Evening |
| Saturn | Tau | 0.0 | 4:54am | 9:46am | 2:37pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.5 | 11:23am | 5:41pm | 12:03am | Evening |
| Neptune | Sco | 7.9 | 1:45pm | 8:50pm | 3:59am | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Southern Delta Aquariids — peaks 30 July, radiant in Aquarius (up to 25/hr). A favourite southern shower with a high radiant — steady rates through the small hours; overlaps the Alpha Capricornids. A bright 82% Moon interferes badly this year.
- Alpha Capricornids — peaks 30 July, radiant in Capricornus (up to 5/hr). Low rates but noted for slow, bright fireballs; radiant well placed from the south. A bright 82% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — July 1972
Evening sky Morning sky Up much of the night Lost in the Sun’s glare
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Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 24 August 2026.