The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — March 1998
Highlights this month
- 20FriMercury at greatest evening elongation (19° from the Sun, mag −0.2) — best evening apparition. (2:51pm)
- 21SatAutumn equinox.
- 25WedThe Moon passes Venus — 0.1° apart. (5:59am)
- 26ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 0.8° apart. (10:08pm)
- 28SatMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (1:37am)
- 28SatVenus at greatest morning elongation (47° from the Sun, mag −4.4) — best morning apparition. (5:36am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 7:03am | 8:01pm | 12h 57m | 9:33pm | 5:31am |
| Mon 10 | 7:12am | 7:47pm | 12h 35m | 9:17pm | 5:42am |
| Thu 20 | 7:22am | 7:32pm | 12h 10m | 9:01pm | 5:53am |
| Tue 31 | 6:32am | 6:15pm | 11h 43m | 7:43pm | 5:05am |
Days shorten by about 75 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterThu 5, 7:38pm
- Full MoonFri 13, 3:38pm
- Last QuarterSat 21, 6:46pm
- New MoonSat 28, 2:12pm
Apogee 15 Mar (406,200 km) · Perigee 28 Mar (356,800 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Psc | −0.8 | 8:44am | 2:30pm | 8:15pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Cap | −4.5 | 3:38am | 10:30am | 5:23pm | Morning |
| Mars | Psc | 1.3 | 8:26am | 2:20pm | 8:14pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Aqr | −1.8 | 6:04am | 12:35pm | 7:05pm | Hidden |
| Saturn | Psc | 0.5 | 9:21am | 3:06pm | 8:50pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Cap | 5.9 | 3:44am | 10:45am | 5:47pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 2:58am | 10:05am | 5:12pm | Morning |
The solar system — March 1998
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.