The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — October 1980
Highlights this month
- 11SatMercury at greatest evening elongation (25° from the Sun, mag −0.0) — best evening apparition. (2:12pm)
- 21TueOrionids meteor shower peaks (up to 20/hr). A bright 90% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 23ThuMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (4:35pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 5:56am | 6:24pm | 12h 29m | 7:54pm | 4:26am |
| Fri 10 | 5:42am | 6:33pm | 12h 51m | 8:04pm | 4:11am |
| Mon 20 | 5:28am | 6:42pm | 13h 15m | 8:17pm | 3:53am |
| Thu 31 | 6:14am | 7:54pm | 13h 40m | 9:33pm | 4:35am |
Days lengthen by about 72 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterWed 1, 1:16pm
- New MoonThu 9, 12:54pm
- First QuarterFri 17, 1:50pm
- Full Moon SupermoonFri 24, 6:55am
- Last QuarterFri 31, 3:33am
Apogee 10 Oct (406,300 km) · Perigee 24 Oct (356,900 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Lib | 0.0 | 6:28am | 1:37pm | 8:46pm | Evening |
| Venus | Leo | −3.9 | 4:01am | 9:39am | 3:17pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Sco | 1.3 | 7:29am | 2:44pm | 9:59pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Vir | −1.5 | 4:42am | 10:38am | 4:34pm | Hidden |
| Saturn | Vir | 0.9 | 4:59am | 10:59am | 4:58pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Lib | 5.7 | 7:07am | 2:11pm | 9:14pm | Evening |
| Neptune | Oph | 7.9 | 8:47am | 4:03pm | 11:18pm | 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 bright 90% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — October 1980
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.
Looking for an earlier month? Browse all past monthly guides →
Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 23 August 2026.