The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — May 1999
Highlights this month
- 2SunMercury and Jupiter in conjunction — 2° apart. (9:13am)
- 6ThuEta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 50/hr). A bright 73% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 7FriNeptune is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (5:16am)
- 13ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 3° apart. (5:16pm)
- 22SatUranus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (12:08pm)
- 26WedMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (4:11am)
- 27ThuThe Moon passes Mars — 5° apart. (12:36am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 7:01am | 5:33pm | 10h 32m | 7:02pm | 5:31am |
| Mon 10 | 7:09am | 5:23pm | 10h 14m | 6:54pm | 5:38am |
| Thu 20 | 7:18am | 5:15pm | 9h 57m | 6:47pm | 5:45am |
| Mon 31 | 7:26am | 5:08pm | 9h 42m | 6:42pm | 5:52am |
Days shorten by about 50 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonSat 1, 12:56am
- Last QuarterSun 9, 3:32am
- New MoonSat 15, 10:08pm
- First QuarterSat 22, 3:37pm
- Full MoonSun 30, 4:41pm
Apogee 2 May (406,200 km) · Perigee 15 May (356,700 km) · Apogee 29 May (406,200 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Ari | −1.1 | 6:10am | 11:28am | 4:47pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Gem | −4.1 | 10:48am | 3:22pm | 7:56pm | Evening |
| Mars | Vir | −1.4 | 3:56pm | 10:30pm | 5:08am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Psc | −1.9 | 4:32am | 10:11am | 3:50pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Ari | 0.2 | 5:57am | 11:20am | 4:42pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Cap | 5.8 | 11:09pm | 6:09am | 1:05pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 10:09pm | 5:18am | 12:22pm | 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 bright 73% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — May 1999
Evening sky Morning sky Up much of the night Lost in the Sun’s glare
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Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 15 August 2026.