The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — October 1972
Highlights this month
- 3TueSaturn is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (3:08am)
- 12ThuUranus in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (8:24am)
- 14SatThe Moon passes Jupiter — 2° apart. (7:16am)
- 21SatOrionids meteor shower peaks (up to 20/hr). A bright 97% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 26ThuThe Moon passes Saturn — 4° apart. (9:04am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1 | 5:56am | 6:24pm | 12h 28m | 7:54pm | 4:26am |
| Tue 10 | 5:42am | 6:32pm | 12h 51m | 8:04pm | 4:11am |
| Fri 20 | 5:28am | 6:42pm | 13h 15m | 8:17pm | 3:54am |
| Mon 31 | 6:14am | 7:54pm | 13h 40m | 9:33pm | 4:36am |
Days lengthen by about 72 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonSat 7, 6:07pm
- First QuarterSun 15, 10:56pm
- Full MoonSun 22, 11:34pm
- Last QuarterSun 29, 3:39pm
Apogee 11 Oct (405,900 km) · Perigee 24 Oct (358,200 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Lib | −0.4 | 6:15am | 1:08pm | 8:03pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Leo | −4.0 | 4:00am | 9:37am | 3:15pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Vir | 1.8 | 5:09am | 11:20am | 5:32pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Sgr | −1.8 | 9:32am | 4:54pm | 12:20am | Evening |
| Saturn | Tau | −0.3 | 11:11pm | 4:05am | 8:56am | Morning |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.6 | 5:32am | 11:56am | 6:19pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Sco | 8.0 | 7:45am | 2:52pm | 9:58pm | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Orionids — peaks 21 October, radiant in Orion (up to 20/hr). Also from Halley's Comet; Orion rides high after midnight from the south, giving a fair show. A bright 97% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — October 1972
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.
Looking for an earlier month? Browse all past monthly guides →
Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 24 August 2026.