The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — October 1986
Highlights this month
- 6MonThe Moon passes Venus — 4° apart. (10:40pm)
- 12SunThe Moon passes Mars — 2° apart. (12:12am)
- 15WedThe Moon passes Jupiter — 2° apart. (3:21am)
- 15WedVenus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (10:13pm)
- 20MonMercury and Venus in conjunction — 4° apart. (5:58am)
- 21TueOrionids meteor shower peaks (up to 20/hr). A bright 89% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 22WedMercury at greatest evening elongation (24° from the Sun, mag −0.1) — best evening apparition. (9:11am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 5:56am | 6:24pm | 12h 27m | 7:53pm | 4:27am |
| Fri 10 | 5:43am | 6:32pm | 12h 50m | 8:04pm | 4:11am |
| Sun 20 | 6:28am | 7:42pm | 13h 14m | 9:16pm | 4:54am |
| Thu 31 | 6:14am | 7:54pm | 13h 39m | 9:32pm | 4:36am |
Days lengthen by about 72 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonSat 4, 4:57am
- First QuarterFri 10, 11:25pm
- Full MoonSat 18, 5:26am
- Last QuarterSun 26, 9:28am
Perigee 7 Oct (366,800 km) · Apogee 23 Oct (405,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Lib | −0.1 | 6:29am | 1:33pm | 8:39pm | Evening |
| Venus | Lib | −4.5 | 6:24am | 1:50pm | 9:16pm | Evening |
| Mars | Cap | −0.6 | 11:54am | 7:12pm | 2:32am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Aqr | −2.6 | 3:22pm | 9:48pm | 4:18am | Evening |
| Saturn | Sco | 0.4 | 7:58am | 3:06pm | 10:15pm | Evening |
| Uranus | Oph | 5.7 | 8:39am | 3:59pm | 11:20pm | Evening |
| Neptune | Sgr | 7.9 | 9:42am | 5:00pm | 12:22am | 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 89% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — October 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.