The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — March 2006
Highlights this month
- 1WedUranus in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (10:06pm)
- 2ThuMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (5:58pm)
- 5SunJupiter is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (10:58am)
- 6MonThe Moon passes Mars — 3° apart. (4:39pm)
- 11SatThe Moon passes Saturn — 4° apart. (7:02am)
- 12SunMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (1:38pm)
- 19SunThe Moon passes Jupiter — 5° apart. (9:23pm)
- 21TueAutumn equinox.
- 24FriMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (11:22pm)
- 25SatVenus at greatest morning elongation (47° from the Sun, mag −4.4) — best morning apparition. (6:48pm)
- 28TueThe Moon passes Mercury — 2° apart. (5:22am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 7:03am | 8:01pm | 12h 57m | 9:33pm | 5:31am |
| Fri 10 | 7:12am | 7:47pm | 12h 35m | 9:17pm | 5:42am |
| Mon 20 | 7:22am | 7:32pm | 12h 10m | 9:01pm | 5:54am |
| Fri 31 | 7:32am | 7:15pm | 11h 43m | 8:43pm | 6:05am |
Days shorten by about 75 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterTue 7, 7:14am
- Full MoonWed 15, 10:35am
- Last QuarterThu 23, 6:22am
- New MoonWed 29, 9:15pm
Apogee 13 Mar (406,200 km) · Perigee 28 Mar (358,700 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Aqr | 5.1 | 6:57am | 1:03pm | 7:09pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Cap | −4.5 | 3:36am | 10:29am | 5:22pm | Morning |
| Mars | Tau | 1.0 | 1:55pm | 6:35pm | 11:15pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Lib | −2.1 | 9:59pm | 4:57am | 11:52am | Morning |
| Saturn | Cnc | −0.1 | 5:21pm | 10:17pm | 3:18am | Evening |
| Uranus | Aqr | 6.0 | 6:15am | 12:43pm | 7:10pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 4:22am | 11:14am | 6:07pm | Morning |
The solar system — March 2006
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.