The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 1987
Highlights this month
- 1TueThe Moon passes Jupiter — 3° apart. (5:56pm)
- 14MonGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A 43% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 16WedJupiter is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (12:39pm)
- 16WedSaturn in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (1:15pm)
- 18FriThe Moon passes Mars — 4° apart. (5:03am)
- 19SatUranus in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (7:39pm)
- 22TueSummer solstice.
- 22TueUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A thin 3% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 23WedMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (6:37pm)
- 28MonThe Moon passes Jupiter — 3° apart. (11:07pm)
- 30WedNeptune in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (10:05am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 1 | 5:51am | 8:27pm | 14h 36m | 10:19pm | 3:59am |
| Wed 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 45m | 10:30pm | 3:55am |
| Sat 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:55am |
| Wed 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 48m | 10:42pm | 4:02am |
Days lengthen by about 12 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonSat 5, 7:02pm
- Last QuarterSun 13, 10:41pm
- New MoonMon 21, 5:32am
- First QuarterSun 27, 9:00pm
Apogee 11 Dec (405,400 km) · Perigee 23 Dec (361,200 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Oph | −1.0 | 5:30am | 12:54pm | 8:20pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.7 | 7:56am | 3:20pm | 10:43pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Lib | 1.7 | 3:41am | 10:33am | 5:26pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Psc | −2.4 | 3:19pm | 9:01pm | 2:46am | Evening |
| Saturn | Oph | 0.3 | 6:02am | 1:19pm | 8:36pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Sgr | 5.8 | 6:10am | 1:32pm | 8:55pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Sgr | 8.0 | 7:00am | 2:18pm | 9:35pm | 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 43% 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 3% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — December 1987
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 20 August 2026.