The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2010
Highlights this month
- 2ThuMercury at greatest evening elongation (21° from the Sun, mag −0.4) — best evening apparition. (2:37am)
- 6MonUranus is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (7:40pm)
- 10FriMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (9:23pm)
- 14TueGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A 56% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 20MonMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (12:18pm)
- 22WedSummer solstice.
- 22WedUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A bright 99% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 30ThuMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (7:10pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 5:51am | 8:27pm | 14h 37m | 10:20pm | 3:59am |
| Fri 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:55am |
| Mon 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:55am |
| Fri 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 11 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonMon 6, 4:39am
- First QuarterTue 14, 1:04am
- Full MoonTue 21, 7:15pm
- Last QuarterTue 28, 3:19pm
Perigee 1 Dec (369,300 km) · Apogee 13 Dec (404,700 km) · Perigee 26 Dec (368,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | 2.1 | 6:43am | 2:02pm | 9:21pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Lib | −4.7 | 3:35am | 10:15am | 4:56pm | Morning |
| Mars | Sgr | 1.3 | 6:43am | 2:09pm | 9:35pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Psc | −2.2 | 1:14pm | 7:27pm | 1:43am | Evening |
| Saturn | Vir | 0.7 | 2:33am | 8:47am | 3:02pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Psc | 5.9 | 1:25pm | 7:33pm | 1:45am | Evening |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 10:55am | 5:39pm | 12:28am | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Geminids — peaks 14 December, radiant in Gemini (up to 150/hr). The richest shower of the year; the radiant reaches a useful altitude after local midnight, so it rewards southern observers well. A 56% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A bright 99% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — December 2010
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.