The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — July 2006
Highlights this month
- 4TueMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:42am)
- 6ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (8:06am)
- 7FriJupiter is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (5:44am)
- 18TueMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (5:02pm)
- 28FriThe Moon passes Mars — 1.0° apart. (3:59am)
- 29SatMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (2:46am)
- 30SunSouthern Delta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 25/hr). A thin 22% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 30SunAlpha Capricornids meteor shower peaks (up to 5/hr). A thin 22% Moon leaves the sky dark.
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 7:37am | 5:10pm | 9h 32m | 6:45pm | 6:03am |
| Mon 10 | 7:36am | 5:15pm | 9h 39m | 6:49pm | 6:02am |
| Thu 20 | 7:31am | 5:22pm | 9h 51m | 6:55pm | 5:58am |
| Mon 31 | 7:22am | 5:30pm | 10h 08m | 7:02pm | 5:51am |
Days lengthen by about 36 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterTue 4, 2:37am
- Full MoonTue 11, 1:11pm
- Last QuarterTue 18, 5:13am
- New MoonTue 25, 2:28pm
Apogee 2 Jul (405,000 km) · Perigee 14 Jul (364,300 km) · Apogee 30 Jul (405,600 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Gem | 5.5 | 7:34am | 12:44pm | 5:53pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Tau | −3.7 | 5:40am | 10:28am | 3:15pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Leo | 1.8 | 9:23am | 2:40pm | 7:57pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Lib | −1.9 | 12:30pm | 7:16pm | 2:05am | Evening |
| Saturn | Cnc | 0.2 | 8:44am | 1:47pm | 6:50pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Aqr | 5.8 | 9:26pm | 3:54am | 10:18am | Morning |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.8 | 7:21pm | 2:17am | 9:08am | 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 22% 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 22% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — July 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.
Looking for an earlier month? Browse all past monthly guides →
Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 15 July 2026.