The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — October 1974
Highlights this month
- 1TueMercury at greatest evening elongation (26° from the Sun, mag 0.0) — best evening apparition. (8:14pm)
- 9WedThe Moon passes Saturn — 3° apart. (11:05am)
- 14MonMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (9:01am)
- 14MonMars in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (11:13pm)
- 21MonOrionids meteor shower peaks (up to 20/hr). A 33% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 22TueUranus in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (8:17am)
- 25FriMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (11:22pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 5:56am | 6:24pm | 12h 27m | 7:53pm | 4:27am |
| Thu 10 | 5:43am | 6:32pm | 12h 49m | 8:03pm | 4:12am |
| Sun 20 | 5:28am | 6:42pm | 13h 14m | 8:16pm | 3:54am |
| Wed 31 | 6:14am | 7:53pm | 13h 39m | 9:32pm | 4:36am |
Days lengthen by about 72 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonTue 1, 8:41pm
- Last QuarterWed 9, 5:46am
- New MoonTue 15, 10:25pm
- First QuarterWed 23, 12:01pm
- Full MoonThu 31, 12:21pm
Perigee 13 Oct (365,600 km) · Apogee 24 Oct (404,900 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Lib | 0.8 | 6:13am | 1:15pm | 8:16pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Vir | −3.8 | 5:28am | 11:47am | 6:05pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Vir | 1.6 | 5:39am | 12:06pm | 6:33pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Aqr | −2.5 | 2:56pm | 9:28pm | 4:05am | Evening |
| Saturn | Gem | −0.0 | 1:19am | 6:08am | 10:58am | Morning |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.6 | 5:56am | 12:31pm | 7:05pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Sco | 8.0 | 8:02am | 3:11pm | 10:20pm | 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 33% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — October 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.