The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — October 2012
Highlights this month
- 4ThuJupiter is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (10:52pm)
- 6SatThe Moon passes Jupiter — 0.9° apart. (7:02am)
- 17WedThe Moon passes Mercury — 1° apart. (1:16pm)
- 19FriThe Moon passes Mars — 2° apart. (12:24am)
- 21SunOrionids meteor shower peaks (up to 20/hr). A 40% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 25ThuSaturn in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (7:37pm)
- 27SatMercury at greatest evening elongation (24° from the Sun, mag −0.1) — best evening apparition. (8:57am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 1 | 5:55am | 6:24pm | 12h 29m | 7:54pm | 4:26am |
| Wed 10 | 6:42am | 7:33pm | 12h 51m | 9:04pm | 5:10am |
| Sat 20 | 6:27am | 7:43pm | 13h 15m | 9:17pm | 4:53am |
| Wed 31 | 6:13am | 7:54pm | 13h 41m | 9:33pm | 4:35am |
Days lengthen by about 72 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterMon 8, 6:38pm
- New MoonMon 15, 11:09pm
- First QuarterMon 22, 2:25pm
- Full MoonTue 30, 6:52am
Apogee 5 Oct (405,500 km) · Perigee 17 Oct (360,200 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Lib | −0.2 | 7:24am | 2:26pm | 9:29pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Leo | −3.9 | 5:06am | 10:46am | 4:26pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Sco | 1.2 | 8:40am | 3:58pm | 11:16pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Tau | −2.4 | 11:53pm | 4:46am | 9:34am | Morning |
| Saturn | Vir | 0.5 | 7:10am | 1:43pm | 8:16pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Psc | 5.8 | 6:08pm | 12:09am | 6:06am | All night |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.8 | 3:14pm | 9:54pm | 4:38am | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Orionids — peaks 21 October, radiant in Orion (up to 20/hr). Also from Halley's Comet; Orion rides high after midnight from the south, giving a fair show. A 40% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — October 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.
Looking for an earlier month? Browse all past monthly guides →
Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 15 July 2026.