The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — March 1986
Highlights this month
- 1SatMercury at greatest evening elongation (18° from the Sun, mag −0.4) — best evening apparition. (3:30am)
- 4TueThe Moon passes Mars — 4° apart. (6:19am)
- 7FriMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (9:24am)
- 17MonMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (5:28am)
- 19WedSaturn is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:31pm)
- 21FriAutumn equinox.
- 27ThuUranus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (9:32pm)
- 29SatMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (3:44pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 1 | 7:03am | 8:01pm | 12h 58m | 9:33pm | 5:31am |
| Sun 10 | 7:12am | 7:48pm | 12h 35m | 9:18pm | 5:42am |
| Thu 20 | 6:22am | 6:32pm | 12h 10m | 8:01pm | 4:53am |
| Mon 31 | 6:32am | 6:15pm | 11h 43m | 7:43pm | 5:05am |
Days shorten by about 75 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterMon 3, 11:19pm
- New MoonTue 11, 1:53am
- First QuarterWed 19, 2:43am
- Full MoonWed 26, 1:05pm
Perigee 2 Mar (369,200 km) · Apogee 17 Mar (405,000 km) · Perigee 29 Mar (364,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Psc | 5.7 | 7:42am | 1:35pm | 7:29pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Psc | −3.7 | 8:22am | 2:19pm | 8:16pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Oph | 0.5 | 11:58pm | 7:21am | 2:42pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Aqr | −1.8 | 5:45am | 12:20pm | 6:55pm | Hidden |
| Saturn | Oph | 0.3 | 11:12pm | 6:24am | 1:33pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Oph | 5.7 | 11:52pm | 7:18am | 2:39pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Sgr | 7.9 | 12:58am | 8:15am | 3:33pm | Morning |
The solar system — March 1986
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 21 August 2026.