The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — April 1977
Highlights this month
- 6WedVenus in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (4:40pm)
- 11MonMercury at greatest evening elongation (19° from the Sun, mag 0.0) — best evening apparition. (2:35am)
- 11MonSaturn is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (2:30pm)
- 15FriThe Moon passes Mars — 4° apart. (7:14pm)
- 20WedMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (7:16pm)
- 23SatLyrids meteor shower peaks (up to 18/hr). A thin 20% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 25MonVenus is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (7:12am)
- 30SatUranus at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Libra (mag 5.4). (3:16pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 1 | 6:33am | 6:14pm | 11h 40m | 7:41pm | 5:06am |
| Sun 10 | 6:42am | 6:00pm | 11h 18m | 7:28pm | 5:14am |
| Wed 20 | 6:51am | 5:46pm | 10h 55m | 7:14pm | 5:23am |
| Sat 30 | 7:00am | 5:34pm | 10h 33m | 7:03pm | 5:31am |
Days shorten by about 67 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonMon 4, 2:11pm
- Last QuarterMon 11, 5:14am
- New MoonMon 18, 8:40pm
- First QuarterWed 27, 12:48am
Perigee 6 Apr (361,400 km) · Apogee 21 Apr (406,000 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Ari | 0.8 | 8:26am | 1:26pm | 6:27pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Psc | −3.9 | 5:50am | 11:20am | 4:50pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Aqr | 1.2 | 3:55am | 10:13am | 4:32pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Tau | −1.8 | 9:53am | 2:48pm | 7:44pm | Evening |
| Saturn | Cnc | 0.1 | 2:36pm | 7:37pm | 12:41am | Evening |
| Uranus | Lib | 5.4 | 6:29pm | 1:22am | 8:11am | Morning |
| Neptune | Oph | 7.9 | 8:31pm | 3:48am | 11:02am | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Lyrids — peaks 23 April, radiant in Lyra (up to 18/hr). A modest shower; the radiant is low in the north-east before dawn from Victoria. A thin 20% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — April 1977
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.