The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — January 2008
Highlights this month
- 4FriQuadrantids meteor shower peaks (up to 110/hr). A thin 16% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 20SunThe Moon passes Mars — 1° apart. (10:43am)
- 22TueMercury at greatest evening elongation (19° from the Sun, mag −0.6) — best evening apparition. (4:15pm)
- 25FriThe Moon passes Saturn — 3° apart. (2:49pm)
- 28MonMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (6:15pm)
- 31ThuMars is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (7:54am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:04am |
| Thu 10 | 6:07am | 8:46pm | 14h 39m | 10:39pm | 4:14am |
| Sun 20 | 6:18am | 8:43pm | 14h 25m | 10:31pm | 4:29am |
| Thu 31 | 6:30am | 8:35pm | 14h 05m | 10:19pm | 4:47am |
Days shorten by about 42 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonTue 8, 10:37pm
- First QuarterWed 16, 6:49am
- Full MoonWed 23, 12:36am
- Last QuarterWed 30, 4:05pm
Apogee 3 Jan (405,400 km) · Perigee 19 Jan (366,400 km) · Apogee 31 Jan (404,800 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Cap | −0.9 | 7:32am | 2:39pm | 9:45pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Oph | −3.8 | 3:40am | 10:55am | 6:11pm | Morning |
| Mars | Tau | −1.1 | 6:55pm | 11:23pm | 3:56am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Sgr | −1.7 | 4:50am | 12:11pm | 7:32pm | Hidden |
| Saturn | Leo | 0.4 | 10:53pm | 4:27am | 9:56am | Morning |
| Uranus | Aqr | 5.9 | 10:31am | 4:53pm | 11:14pm | Evening |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 8:26am | 3:17pm | 10:07pm | 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 thin 16% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — January 2008
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.