The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 1974
Highlights this month
- 2MonNeptune in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (8:50am)
- 2MonThe Moon passes Saturn — 3° apart. (11:08pm)
- 14SatGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A thin 0% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 20FriMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (6:49am)
- 22SunSummer solstice.
- 22SunUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A 54% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 30MonThe Moon passes Saturn — 3° apart. (5:16am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 5:51am | 8:27pm | 14h 36m | 10:19pm | 3:59am |
| Mon 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 45m | 10:30pm | 3:55am |
| Thu 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:55am |
| Mon 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 48m | 10:42pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 11 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterFri 6, 9:09pm
- New MoonSat 14, 3:30am
- First QuarterSun 22, 6:46am
- Full MoonSun 29, 2:54pm
Perigee 3 Dec (367,300 km) · Apogee 19 Dec (405,300 km) · Perigee 31 Dec (361,900 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Oph | −1.1 | 5:36am | 1:03pm | 8:30pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.7 | 6:29am | 1:56pm | 9:23pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Sco | 1.6 | 4:38am | 11:50am | 7:03pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Aqr | −2.1 | 12:07pm | 6:36pm | 1:10am | Evening |
| Saturn | Gem | −0.4 | 10:10pm | 3:02am | 7:51am | Morning |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.6 | 3:05am | 9:44am | 4:23pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Oph | 8.0 | 5:10am | 12:20pm | 7:31pm | Hidden |
Meteor showers
- Geminids — peaks 14 December, radiant in Gemini (up to 150/hr). The richest shower of the year; the radiant reaches a useful altitude after local midnight, so it rewards southern observers well. A thin 0% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A 54% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — December 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.