The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — March 2009
Highlights this month
- 5ThuVenus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:28am)
- 9MonSaturn at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Leo (mag 0.4). (6:44am)
- 13FriUranus in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (12:42pm)
- 20FriAutumn equinox.
- 23MonThe Moon passes Jupiter — 1° apart. (7:17am)
- 24TueThe Moon passes Mars — 4° apart. (9:30pm)
- 28SatVenus in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (6:27am)
- 31TueMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (2:18pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1 | 7:04am | 8:00pm | 12h 57m | 9:32pm | 5:31am |
| Tue 10 | 7:13am | 7:47pm | 12h 34m | 9:17pm | 5:43am |
| Fri 20 | 7:22am | 7:32pm | 12h 09m | 9:00pm | 5:54am |
| Tue 31 | 7:33am | 7:15pm | 11h 42m | 8:42pm | 6:05am |
Days shorten by about 75 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterWed 4, 6:53pm
- Full MoonWed 11, 1:35pm
- Last QuarterThu 19, 4:45am
- New MoonFri 27, 3:11am
Perigee 7 Mar (366,700 km) · Apogee 19 Mar (404,800 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Aqr | −0.6 | 6:04am | 12:39pm | 7:14pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Psc | −4.3 | 9:07am | 2:27pm | 7:47pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Aqr | 1.2 | 5:15am | 11:58am | 6:41pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Cap | −1.8 | 4:05am | 11:02am | 5:59pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Leo | 0.4 | 7:25pm | 1:10am | 6:50am | All night |
| Uranus | Psc | 6.0 | 7:10am | 1:23pm | 7:36pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 4:53am | 11:39am | 6:24pm | Morning |
The solar system — March 2009
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.