The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — August 1998
Highlights this month
- 3MonUranus at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Capricornus (mag 5.7). (4:56pm)
- 11TueThe Moon passes Jupiter — 0.8° apart. (10:21am)
- 13ThuPerseids meteor shower peaks (up to 100/hr). A bright 67% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 13ThuThe Moon passes Saturn — 2° apart. (10:54pm)
- 14FriMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (9:44am)
- 17MonSaturn is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (12:20am)
- 23SunMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (3:17pm)
- 31MonMercury at greatest morning elongation (18° from the Sun, mag −0.2) — best morning apparition. (7:02pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 7:21am | 5:31pm | 10h 10m | 7:02pm | 5:50am |
| Mon 10 | 7:12am | 5:39pm | 10h 27m | 7:09pm | 5:42am |
| Thu 20 | 7:00am | 5:48pm | 10h 48m | 7:16pm | 5:31am |
| Mon 31 | 6:44am | 5:57pm | 11h 13m | 7:25pm | 5:16am |
Days lengthen by about 63 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonSat 8, 12:14pm
- Last QuarterSat 15, 5:48am
- New MoonSat 22, 12:05pm
- First QuarterSun 30, 3:09pm
Perigee 11 Aug (366,400 km) · Apogee 27 Aug (405,400 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Leo | 6.0 | 6:43am | 12:11pm | 5:39pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Cnc | −3.7 | 6:08am | 11:05am | 4:01pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Gem | 1.7 | 5:51am | 10:41am | 3:30pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Psc | −2.6 | 8:25pm | 2:39am | 8:49am | Morning |
| Saturn | Ari | 0.2 | 11:24pm | 4:57am | 10:26am | Morning |
| Uranus | Cap | 5.7 | 4:34pm | 11:36pm | 6:43am | All night |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.8 | 3:46pm | 10:54pm | 6:06am | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Perseids — peaks 13 August, radiant in Perseus (up to 100/hr). The famous northern shower, but its far-northern radiant scarcely rises from Victoria — only a trickle this far south. A bright 67% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — August 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.