The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — May 2011
Highlights this month
- 6FriEta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 50/hr). A thin 9% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 8SunMercury at greatest morning elongation (27° from the Sun, mag 0.4) — best morning apparition. (4:52am)
- 8SunMercury and Venus in conjunction — 1° apart. (2:58pm)
- 12ThuVenus and Jupiter in conjunction — 0.6° apart. (12:43am)
- 12ThuMercury and Jupiter in conjunction — 2° apart. (6:11am)
- 18WedMercury and Venus in conjunction — 1° apart. (4:53pm)
- 23MonVenus and Mars in conjunction — 1.0° apart. (7:39pm)
- 31TueThe Moon passes Mars — 4° apart. (4:22am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1 | 7:01am | 5:33pm | 10h 32m | 7:02pm | 5:31am |
| Tue 10 | 7:09am | 5:23pm | 10h 14m | 6:54pm | 5:38am |
| Fri 20 | 7:18am | 5:15pm | 9h 57m | 6:47pm | 5:45am |
| Tue 31 | 7:26am | 5:08pm | 9h 42m | 6:42pm | 5:52am |
Days shorten by about 50 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonTue 3, 4:52pm
- First QuarterWed 11, 6:37am
- Full MoonTue 17, 9:09pm
- Last QuarterWed 25, 4:56am
Perigee 15 May (361,900 km) · Apogee 27 May (405,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Ari | 0.1 | 5:04am | 10:41am | 4:18pm | Morning |
| Venus | Ari | −3.7 | 5:07am | 10:40am | 4:12pm | Morning |
| Mars | Ari | 1.3 | 5:29am | 10:53am | 4:18pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Psc | −1.9 | 4:52am | 10:26am | 4:00pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Vir | 0.5 | 3:26pm | 9:33pm | 3:46am | Evening |
| Uranus | Psc | 5.9 | 3:04am | 9:04am | 3:04pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.9 | 12:24am | 7:03am | 1:42pm | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Eta Aquariids — peaks 6 May, radiant in Aquarius (up to 50/hr). Debris of Halley's Comet and one of the best showers of the year from the south — swift meteors in the pre-dawn eastern sky. A thin 9% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — May 2011
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.