The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — July 2018
Highlights this month
- 1SunThe Moon passes Mars — 5° apart. (9:59am)
- 11WedJupiter is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (12:58pm)
- 12ThuMercury at greatest evening elongation (26° from the Sun, mag 0.4) — best evening apparition. (3:22pm)
- 15SunThe Moon passes Mercury — 2° apart. (8:53am)
- 16MonThe Moon passes Venus — 2° apart. (2:25pm)
- 21SatThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (12:32pm)
- 25WedThe Moon passes Saturn — 2° apart. (4:04pm)
- 25WedMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (5:23pm)
- 27FriMars at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Capricornus (mag −2.8). (3:06pm)
- 30MonSouthern Delta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 25/hr). A bright 95% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 30MonAlpha Capricornids meteor shower peaks (up to 5/hr). A bright 95% 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 39m | 6:49pm | 6:02am |
| Fri 20 | 7:31am | 5:22pm | 9h 51m | 6:55pm | 5:58am |
| Tue 31 | 7:22am | 5:31pm | 10h 08m | 7:02pm | 5:51am |
Days lengthen by about 36 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterFri 6, 5:57pm
- New MoonFri 13, 12:52pm
- First QuarterFri 20, 5:50am
- Full MoonSat 28, 6:23am
Perigee 13 Jul (356,800 km) · Apogee 27 Jul (406,200 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Leo | 0.6 | 8:55am | 2:12pm | 7:29pm | Evening |
| Venus | Leo | −4.0 | 9:51am | 3:20pm | 8:49pm | Evening |
| Mars | Cap | −2.6 | 6:05pm | 1:35am | 9:00am | Morning |
| Jupiter | Lib | −2.0 | 12:42pm | 7:32pm | 2:26am | Evening |
| Saturn | Sgr | −0.0 | 3:48pm | 11:06pm | 6:29am | Evening |
| Uranus | Ari | 5.9 | 1:26am | 6:51am | 12:15pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.8 | 9:35pm | 4:01am | 10:23am | 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 95% 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 95% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — July 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.