The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — May 1973
Highlights this month
- 5SatThe Moon passes Saturn — 3° apart. (6:12pm)
- 6SunEta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 50/hr). A thin 16% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 20SunMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (6:11pm)
- 23WedThe Moon passes Jupiter — 3° apart. (11:47pm)
- 27SunNeptune at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Scorpius (mag 7.8). (9:59pm)
- 31ThuJupiter is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (3:24pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 7:01am | 5:32pm | 10h 31m | 7:02pm | 5:31am |
| Thu 10 | 7:09am | 5:23pm | 10h 14m | 6:54pm | 5:38am |
| Sun 20 | 7:18am | 5:14pm | 9h 57m | 6:47pm | 5:46am |
| Thu 31 | 7:26am | 5:08pm | 9h 42m | 6:42pm | 5:53am |
Days shorten by about 49 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonThu 3, 7:01am
- First QuarterWed 9, 10:05pm
- Full MoonThu 17, 2:55pm
- Last QuarterFri 25, 6:45pm
Perigee 4 May (360,000 km) · Apogee 20 May (406,100 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Ari | −1.7 | 6:41am | 11:51am | 5:01pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Tau | −3.7 | 8:01am | 12:54pm | 5:48pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Aqr | 0.4 | 12:39am | 7:19am | 1:59pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Cap | −2.1 | 10:43pm | 5:47am | 12:48pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Tau | −0.0 | 9:18am | 2:06pm | 6:55pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.4 | 3:37pm | 10:01pm | 4:30am | Evening |
| Neptune | Sco | 7.8 | 5:59pm | 1:10am | 8:18am | Morning |
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 16% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — May 1973
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.