The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — April 2008
Highlights this month
- 12SatThe Moon passes Mars — 1° apart. (4:01pm)
- 16WedThe Moon passes Saturn — 2° apart. (2:27am)
- 16WedMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (5:11pm)
- 23WedLyrids meteor shower peaks (up to 18/hr). A bright 93% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 27SunThe Moon passes Jupiter — 3° apart. (4:23pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 7:34am | 7:13pm | 11h 39m | 8:41pm | 6:06am |
| Thu 10 | 6:42am | 6:00pm | 11h 17m | 7:27pm | 5:14am |
| Sun 20 | 6:51am | 5:46pm | 10h 54m | 7:14pm | 5:23am |
| Wed 30 | 7:01am | 5:33pm | 10h 32m | 7:02pm | 5:31am |
Days shorten by about 67 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonSun 6, 1:57pm
- First QuarterSun 13, 4:33am
- Full MoonSun 20, 8:27pm
- Last QuarterTue 29, 12:13am
Perigee 8 Apr (361,200 km) · Apogee 23 Apr (406,000 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Psc | −2.0 | 6:39am | 12:15pm | 5:52pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Psc | −3.7 | 5:34am | 11:28am | 5:21pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Gem | 1.0 | 1:22pm | 6:01pm | 10:41pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Sgr | −2.0 | 11:00pm | 6:19am | 1:34pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Leo | 0.3 | 3:40pm | 9:02pm | 2:28am | Evening |
| Uranus | Aqr | 6.0 | 3:57am | 10:13am | 4:28pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 1:44am | 8:31am | 3:18pm | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Lyrids — peaks 23 April, radiant in Lyra (up to 18/hr). A modest shower; the radiant is low in the north-east before dawn from Victoria. A bright 93% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — April 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.
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Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 15 July 2026.