The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — October 2018
Highlights this month
- 5FriVenus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (2:14pm)
- 12FriThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (10:27am)
- 15MonThe Moon passes Saturn — 2° apart. (2:00pm)
- 18ThuThe Moon passes Mars — 2° apart. (11:17pm)
- 21SunOrionids meteor shower peaks (up to 20/hr). A bright 88% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 24WedUranus at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Aries (mag 5.7). (12:07pm)
- 27SatVenus in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (1:18am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 1 | 5:56am | 6:24pm | 12h 28m | 7:54pm | 4:27am |
| Wed 10 | 6:42am | 7:32pm | 12h 50m | 9:04pm | 5:11am |
| Sat 20 | 6:28am | 7:42pm | 13h 14m | 9:17pm | 4:54am |
| Wed 31 | 6:14am | 7:54pm | 13h 40m | 9:32pm | 4:36am |
Days lengthen by about 72 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterTue 2, 7:49pm
- New MoonTue 9, 2:45pm
- First QuarterWed 17, 5:07am
- Full MoonThu 25, 3:53am
Perigee 6 Oct (366,600 km) · Apogee 18 Oct (404,800 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Vir | −0.4 | 7:14am | 2:06pm | 8:59pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Lib | −4.2 | 6:48am | 2:02pm | 9:16pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Cap | −1.0 | 1:37pm | 8:47pm | 3:59am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Lib | −1.6 | 8:13am | 3:16pm | 10:19pm | Evening |
| Saturn | Sgr | 0.4 | 10:41am | 6:01pm | 1:24am | Evening |
| Uranus | Ari | 5.7 | 8:14pm | 1:44am | 7:09am | Morning |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.8 | 4:23pm | 10:47pm | 5:16am | 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 bright 88% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — October 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.
Looking for an earlier month? Browse all past monthly guides →
Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 15 July 2026.