The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — May 2018
Highlights this month
- 1TueThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (5:13am)
- 5SatThe Moon passes Saturn — 2° apart. (6:13am)
- 6SunEta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 50/hr). A bright 67% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 6SunThe Moon passes Mars — 3° apart. (4:49pm)
- 9WedJupiter at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Libra (mag −2.4). (10:28am)
- 14MonThe Moon passes Mercury — 2° apart. (4:59am)
- 28MonThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (5:52am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 7:01am | 5:32pm | 10h 31m | 7:02pm | 5:32am |
| Thu 10 | 7:09am | 5:23pm | 10h 13m | 6:54pm | 5:39am |
| Sun 20 | 7:18am | 5:14pm | 9h 56m | 6:47pm | 5:46am |
| Thu 31 | 7:26am | 5:08pm | 9h 42m | 6:42pm | 5:53am |
Days shorten by about 49 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterTue 8, 12:08pm
- New MoonTue 15, 9:56pm
- First QuarterTue 22, 1:49pm
- Full MoonWed 30, 12:17am
Apogee 6 May (405,000 km) · Perigee 18 May (363,800 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Ari | −0.3 | 5:21am | 10:53am | 4:25pm | Morning |
| Venus | Tau | −3.7 | 9:47am | 2:25pm | 7:04pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Sgr | −0.7 | 9:38pm | 4:58am | 12:15pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Lib | −2.3 | 4:55pm | 11:49pm | 6:47am | All night |
| Saturn | Sgr | 0.1 | 8:06pm | 3:27am | 10:45am | Morning |
| Uranus | Ari | 5.9 | 5:14am | 10:41am | 4:08pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.9 | 1:38am | 8:00am | 2:22pm | 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 bright 67% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — May 2018
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.