The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — July 2012
Highlights this month
- 1SunMercury at greatest evening elongation (26° from the Sun, mag 0.5) — best evening apparition. (11:47am)
- 1SunVenus and Jupiter in conjunction — 5° apart. (5:15pm)
- 13FriUranus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:42pm)
- 14SatMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (3:18pm)
- 15SunThe Moon passes Jupiter — 0.5° apart. (1:02pm)
- 16MonThe Moon passes Venus — 4° apart. (1:17am)
- 25WedThe Moon passes Mars — 4° apart. (5:35am)
- 29SunMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (5:52am)
- 30MonSouthern Delta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 25/hr). A bright 89% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 30MonAlpha Capricornids meteor shower peaks (up to 5/hr). A bright 89% Moon interferes badly this year.
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1 | 7:37am | 5:10pm | 9h 33m | 6:45pm | 6:03am |
| Tue 10 | 7:36am | 5:15pm | 9h 40m | 6:49pm | 6:02am |
| Fri 20 | 7:31am | 5:22pm | 9h 52m | 6:55pm | 5:58am |
| Tue 31 | 7:22am | 5:31pm | 10h 09m | 7:02pm | 5:51am |
Days lengthen by about 36 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonWed 4, 4:49am
- Last QuarterWed 11, 11:50am
- New MoonThu 19, 2:31pm
- First QuarterThu 26, 6:59pm
Perigee 2 Jul (362,200 km) · Apogee 14 Jul (405,200 km) · Perigee 29 Jul (367,600 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Cnc | 1.8 | 8:26am | 1:43pm | 6:59pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Tau | −4.6 | 4:29am | 9:34am | 2:38pm | Morning |
| Mars | Vir | 1.0 | 11:00am | 5:09pm | 11:19pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Tau | −1.9 | 4:16am | 9:09am | 2:02pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Vir | 0.6 | 11:52am | 6:15pm | 12:42am | Evening |
| Uranus | Psc | 5.8 | 11:23pm | 5:20am | 11:13am | Morning |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.8 | 8:26pm | 3:08am | 9:45am | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Southern Delta Aquariids — peaks 30 July, radiant in Aquarius (up to 25/hr). A favourite southern shower with a high radiant — steady rates through the small hours; overlaps the Alpha Capricornids. A bright 89% Moon interferes badly this year.
- Alpha Capricornids — peaks 30 July, radiant in Capricornus (up to 5/hr). Low rates but noted for slow, bright fireballs; radiant well placed from the south. A bright 89% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — July 2012
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.