The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — July 2003
Highlights this month
- 3ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (9:01am)
- 5SatMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (8:09pm)
- 17ThuThe Moon passes Mars — 0.3° apart. (6:01pm)
- 30WedSouthern Delta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 25/hr). A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 30WedAlpha Capricornids meteor shower peaks (up to 5/hr). A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 31ThuMars is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (8:59am)
- 31ThuThe Moon passes Mercury — 4° apart. (2:01pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 7:37am | 5:10pm | 9h 32m | 6:45pm | 6:03am |
| Thu 10 | 7:36am | 5:15pm | 9h 39m | 6:49pm | 6:02am |
| Sun 20 | 7:31am | 5:21pm | 9h 50m | 6:54pm | 5:58am |
| Thu 31 | 7:23am | 5:30pm | 10h 08m | 7:02pm | 5:51am |
Days lengthen by about 35 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterMon 7, 12:37pm
- Full MoonMon 14, 5:18am
- Last QuarterMon 21, 5:04pm
- New MoonTue 29, 5:00pm
Perigee 11 Jul (365,200 km) · Apogee 23 Jul (404,900 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Cnc | −1.1 | 8:21am | 1:14pm | 6:07pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Gem | −3.7 | 7:00am | 11:45am | 4:30pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Aqr | −1.8 | 8:53pm | 3:40am | 10:25am | Morning |
| Jupiter | Leo | −1.6 | 9:11am | 2:23pm | 7:36pm | Evening |
| Saturn | Gem | −0.1 | 6:27am | 11:13am | 3:59pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Aqr | 5.8 | 8:27pm | 3:09am | 9:48am | Morning |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.8 | 6:48pm | 1:51am | 8:49am | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Southern Delta Aquariids — peaks 30 July, radiant in Aquarius (up to 25/hr). A favourite southern shower with a high radiant — steady rates through the small hours; overlaps the Alpha Capricornids. A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- Alpha Capricornids — peaks 30 July, radiant in Capricornus (up to 5/hr). Low rates but noted for slow, bright fireballs; radiant well placed from the south. A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — July 2003
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.
Looking for an earlier month? Browse all past monthly guides →
Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 15 July 2026.