The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — May 1997
Highlights this month
- 1ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (5:43am)
- 2FriNeptune is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (4:12am)
- 5MonThe Moon passes Saturn — 0.7° apart. (1:12am)
- 6TueEta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 50/hr). A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 8ThuMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (4:17am)
- 13TueUranus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (4:28pm)
- 17SatThe Moon passes Mars — 2° apart. (12:11am)
- 23FriMercury at greatest morning elongation (25° from the Sun, mag 0.5) — best morning apparition. (9:11am)
- 28WedThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (2:42pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 | 7:01am | 5:32pm | 10h 31m | 7:02pm | 5:32am |
| Sat 10 | 7:09am | 5:23pm | 10h 13m | 6:53pm | 5:39am |
| Tue 20 | 7:18am | 5:14pm | 9h 56m | 6:47pm | 5:46am |
| Sat 31 | 7:26am | 5:08pm | 9h 42m | 6:42pm | 5:53am |
Days shorten by about 49 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonWed 7, 6:45am
- First QuarterWed 14, 8:56pm
- Full MoonThu 22, 7:22pm
- Last QuarterThu 29, 5:57pm
Perigee 3 May (366,300 km) · Apogee 15 May (404,800 km) · Perigee 29 May (369,900 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Ari | 1.1 | 5:14am | 10:48am | 4:23pm | Morning |
| Venus | Tau | −3.7 | 8:10am | 1:02pm | 5:54pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Leo | −0.1 | 2:24pm | 8:07pm | 1:54am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Cap | −2.1 | 11:28pm | 6:23am | 1:15pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Psc | 0.7 | 4:01am | 9:50am | 3:39pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Cap | 5.8 | 10:27pm | 5:35am | 12:38pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 9:46pm | 4:58am | 12:05pm | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Eta Aquariids — peaks 6 May, radiant in Aquarius (up to 50/hr). Debris of Halley's Comet and one of the best showers of the year from the south — swift meteors in the pre-dawn eastern sky. A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — May 1997
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 16 August 2026.