The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 1979
Highlights this month
- 8SatMercury at greatest morning elongation (21° from the Sun, mag −0.5) — best morning apparition. (2:30am)
- 11TueThe Moon passes Mars — 2° apart. (3:52am)
- 11TueThe Moon passes Jupiter — 0.4° apart. (6:37am)
- 12WedThe Moon passes Saturn — 0.0° apart. (4:12pm)
- 13ThuNeptune in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (7:32am)
- 14FriGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A 26% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 15SatMars and Jupiter in conjunction — 2° apart. (10:21pm)
- 22SatSummer solstice.
- 22SatUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A thin 10% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 27ThuJupiter is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (3:56pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 1 | 5:51am | 8:27pm | 14h 36m | 10:19pm | 3:59am |
| Sun 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 45m | 10:30pm | 3:55am |
| Wed 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:55am |
| Sun 31 | 5:58am | 8:46pm | 14h 48m | 10:42pm | 4:02am |
Days lengthen by about 12 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonTue 4, 5:06am
- Last QuarterWed 12, 1:03am
- New MoonWed 19, 7:29pm
- First QuarterWed 26, 4:10pm
Apogee 11 Dec (404,700 km) · Perigee 24 Dec (368,400 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sco | −0.5 | 4:46am | 11:54am | 7:02pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.7 | 7:53am | 3:17pm | 10:41pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Leo | 0.4 | 1:08am | 6:37am | 12:07pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Leo | −1.9 | 1:02am | 6:36am | 12:10pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Vir | 0.9 | 1:47am | 7:39am | 1:30pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Lib | 5.7 | 4:08am | 11:11am | 6:13pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Oph | 8.0 | 5:50am | 1:05pm | 8:21pm | 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 26% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A thin 10% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — December 1979
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.