The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — April 1988
Highlights this month
- 3SunVenus at greatest evening elongation (46° from the Sun, mag −4.4) — best evening apparition. (6:21pm)
- 5TueUranus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (2:37am)
- 11MonThe Moon passes Mars — 3° apart. (2:58am)
- 11MonSaturn is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:00am)
- 11MonNeptune is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (5:11pm)
- 20WedThe Moon passes Venus — 1.0° apart. (9:40am)
- 21ThuMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (1:03am)
- 23SatLyrids meteor shower peaks (up to 18/hr). A 44% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 1 | 6:34am | 6:13pm | 11h 39m | 7:41pm | 5:06am |
| Sun 10 | 6:42am | 6:00pm | 11h 18m | 7:27pm | 5:14am |
| Wed 20 | 6:51am | 5:46pm | 10h 54m | 7:14pm | 5:23am |
| Sat 30 | 7:00am | 5:33pm | 10h 33m | 7:03pm | 5:31am |
Days shorten by about 67 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonSat 2, 7:24pm
- Last QuarterSun 10, 5:31am
- New MoonSat 16, 9:59pm
- First QuarterSun 24, 8:32am
Perigee 14 Apr (363,800 km) · Apogee 26 Apr (405,000 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Psc | −1.5 | 6:15am | 11:59am | 5:42pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Tau | −4.5 | 10:46am | 3:19pm | 7:52pm | Evening |
| Mars | Cap | 0.5 | 12:09am | 7:19am | 2:29pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Ari | −1.9 | 7:52am | 1:11pm | 6:30pm | Hidden |
| Saturn | Sgr | 0.3 | 9:37pm | 4:58am | 12:15pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Sgr | 5.7 | 9:25pm | 4:52am | 12:14pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Sgr | 7.9 | 10:10pm | 5:31am | 12:48pm | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Lyrids — peaks 23 April, radiant in Lyra (up to 18/hr). A modest shower; the radiant is low in the north-east before dawn from Victoria. A 44% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — April 1988
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.