The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — April 1978
Highlights this month
- 1SatMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:52pm)
- 12WedMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (2:46am)
- 23SunLyrids meteor shower peaks (up to 18/hr). A bright 100% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 24MonMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (11:55am)
- 26WedSaturn is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (3:00am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 6:33am | 6:14pm | 11h 41m | 7:42pm | 5:05am |
| Mon 10 | 6:42am | 6:01pm | 11h 19m | 7:28pm | 5:14am |
| Thu 20 | 6:51am | 5:47pm | 10h 56m | 7:15pm | 5:22am |
| Sun 30 | 7:00am | 5:34pm | 10h 34m | 7:03pm | 5:31am |
Days shorten by about 67 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterSat 1, 1:16am
- New MoonSat 8, 1:20am
- First QuarterSat 15, 11:55pm
- Full MoonSun 23, 2:14pm
- Last QuarterSun 30, 7:07am
Apogee 14 Apr (404,800 km) · Perigee 26 Apr (366,400 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Psc | 5.7 | 6:23am | 11:56am | 5:30pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Ari | −3.7 | 8:28am | 1:38pm | 6:48pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Cnc | 0.6 | 2:17pm | 7:05pm | 11:53pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Gem | −1.8 | 12:07pm | 4:50pm | 9:32pm | Evening |
| Saturn | Leo | 0.2 | 3:20pm | 8:33pm | 1:50am | Evening |
| Uranus | Lib | 5.4 | 6:43pm | 1:42am | 8:36am | Morning |
| Neptune | Oph | 7.9 | 8:40pm | 3:59am | 11:13am | 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 bright 100% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — April 1978
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.