The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2005
Highlights this month
- 4SunMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (11:55am)
- 5MonThe Moon passes Venus — 2° apart. (5:59am)
- 11SunMars is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (11:36am)
- 12MonThe Moon passes Mars — 1° apart. (3:32pm)
- 12MonMercury at greatest morning elongation (21° from the Sun, mag −0.4) — best morning apparition. (11:30pm)
- 14WedGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A bright 98% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 19MonThe Moon passes Saturn — 4° apart. (10:49pm)
- 22ThuSummer solstice.
- 22ThuUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A bright 65% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 23FriVenus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (4:13pm)
- 27TueThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (11:49am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 | 5:51am | 8:27pm | 14h 37m | 10:20pm | 3:58am |
| Sat 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:55am |
| Tue 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:56am |
| Sat 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 10 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonFri 2, 2:05am
- First QuarterThu 8, 8:37pm
- Full MoonFri 16, 3:16am
- Last QuarterSat 24, 6:35am
- New MoonSat 31, 2:18pm
Perigee 5 Dec (367,100 km) · Apogee 21 Dec (405,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sco | −0.5 | 4:43am | 11:48am | 6:53pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Cap | −4.7 | 8:38am | 3:53pm | 11:08pm | Evening |
| Mars | Ari | −1.1 | 4:54pm | 10:06pm | 3:21am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Lib | −1.5 | 3:31am | 10:18am | 5:05pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Cnc | −0.1 | 11:33pm | 4:40am | 9:42am | Morning |
| Uranus | Aqr | 5.9 | 11:48am | 6:20pm | 12:57am | Evening |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 10:00am | 4:56pm | 11:51pm | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Geminids — peaks 14 December, radiant in Gemini (up to 150/hr). The richest shower of the year; the radiant reaches a useful altitude after local midnight, so it rewards southern observers well. A bright 98% Moon interferes badly this year.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A bright 65% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — December 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.
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Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 15 July 2026.