The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — August 1974
Highlights this month
- 13TuePerseids meteor shower peaks (up to 100/hr). A 27% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 15ThuThe Moon passes Saturn — 2° apart. (12:29pm)
- 17SatMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (7:53pm)
- 19MonNeptune is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (2:58pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 | 7:22am | 5:31pm | 10h 09m | 7:02pm | 5:51am |
| Sat 10 | 7:12am | 5:39pm | 10h 26m | 7:09pm | 5:42am |
| Tue 20 | 7:00am | 5:47pm | 10h 47m | 7:16pm | 5:31am |
| Sat 31 | 6:44am | 5:57pm | 11h 12m | 7:25pm | 5:17am |
Days lengthen by about 63 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonSat 3, 2:02pm
- Last QuarterSun 11, 12:48pm
- New MoonSun 18, 5:00am
- First QuarterSun 25, 1:39am
Apogee 3 Aug (406,300 km) · Perigee 17 Aug (357,200 km) · Apogee 30 Aug (406,100 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Leo | −1.9 | 7:08am | 12:17pm | 5:27pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Cnc | −3.7 | 6:02am | 10:57am | 3:52pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Leo | 1.8 | 8:04am | 1:41pm | 7:18pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Aqr | −2.7 | 7:30pm | 1:58am | 8:22am | Morning |
| Saturn | Gem | 0.0 | 5:01am | 9:48am | 2:36pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.6 | 9:48am | 4:18pm | 10:49pm | Evening |
| Neptune | Sco | 7.9 | 11:59am | 7:07pm | 2:20am | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Perseids — peaks 13 August, radiant in Perseus (up to 100/hr). The famous northern shower, but its far-northern radiant scarcely rises from Victoria — only a trickle this far south. A 27% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — August 1974
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 23 August 2026.