The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — October 2004
Highlights this month
- 6WedMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (4:16am)
- 21ThuOrionids meteor shower peaks (up to 20/hr). A 54% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 24SunNeptune is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (3:01pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 1 | 5:55am | 6:24pm | 12h 29m | 7:54pm | 4:26am |
| Sun 10 | 5:42am | 6:33pm | 12h 51m | 8:04pm | 4:10am |
| Wed 20 | 5:27am | 6:43pm | 13h 15m | 8:17pm | 3:53am |
| Sun 31 | 6:13am | 7:54pm | 13h 41m | 9:33pm | 4:35am |
Days lengthen by about 72 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterWed 6, 8:17pm
- New MoonThu 14, 12:50pm
- First QuarterThu 21, 7:55am
- Full MoonThu 28, 1:12pm
Apogee 6 Oct (404,800 km) · Perigee 18 Oct (367,400 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Vir | −0.9 | 5:53am | 12:31pm | 7:09pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Leo | −3.9 | 4:05am | 9:44am | 3:24pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Vir | 1.8 | 5:15am | 11:30am | 5:46pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Vir | −1.5 | 4:57am | 11:02am | 5:06pm | Hidden |
| Saturn | Gem | 0.0 | 1:47am | 6:40am | 11:33am | Morning |
| Uranus | Aqr | 5.8 | 2:27pm | 9:04pm | 3:46am | Evening |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 12:45pm | 7:43pm | 2:45am | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Orionids — peaks 21 October, radiant in Orion (up to 20/hr). Also from Halley's Comet; Orion rides high after midnight from the south, giving a fair show. A 54% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — October 2004
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.