The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — January 2005
Highlights this month
- 4TueQuadrantids meteor shower peaks (up to 110/hr). A 45% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 4TueThe Moon passes Jupiter — 0.3° apart. (12:24pm)
- 8SatThe Moon passes Mars — 3° apart. (5:09am)
- 14FriSaturn at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Gemini (mag −0.5). (10:09am)
- 24MonThe Moon passes Saturn — 5° apart. (8:17pm)
- 31MonThe Moon passes Jupiter — 0.8° apart. (9:04pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 6:00am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:04am |
| Mon 10 | 6:08am | 8:46pm | 14h 38m | 10:39pm | 4:15am |
| Thu 20 | 6:19am | 8:43pm | 14h 24m | 10:31pm | 4:30am |
| Mon 31 | 6:31am | 8:35pm | 14h 04m | 10:18pm | 4:48am |
Days shorten by about 43 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterTue 4, 4:49am
- New MoonMon 10, 11:03pm
- First QuarterMon 17, 5:59pm
- Full MoonTue 25, 9:34pm
Perigee 10 Jan (356,700 km) · Apogee 24 Jan (406,200 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | −0.4 | 4:47am | 12:11pm | 7:36pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.7 | 4:48am | 12:11pm | 7:33pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Oph | 1.5 | 3:13am | 10:32am | 5:52pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Vir | −1.8 | 12:31am | 6:52am | 1:13pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Gem | −0.5 | 8:31pm | 1:26am | 6:17am | All night |
| Uranus | Aqr | 6.0 | 9:32am | 4:07pm | 10:43pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 7:52am | 2:48pm | 9:45pm | Hidden |
Meteor showers
- Quadrantids — peaks 4 January, radiant in Boötes (up to 110/hr). Radiant stays below the horizon from Victoria — essentially a no-show this far south. A 45% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — January 2005
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.