The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2036
Highlights this month
- 4ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 3° apart. (7:02pm)
- 7SunMercury at greatest evening elongation (21° from the Sun, mag −0.4) — best evening apparition. (12:00am)
- 9TueThe Moon passes Saturn — 0.6° apart. (4:53pm)
- 13SatJupiter at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Taurus (mag −2.6). (1:17am)
- 14SunSaturn is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (7:28am)
- 14SunGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A thin 12% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 15MonMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (10:02am)
- 21SunSummer solstice.
- 22MonUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A thin 19% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 24WedMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (11:20pm)
- 31WedThe Moon passes Jupiter — 3° apart. (11:16pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 1 | 5:50am | 8:28pm | 14h 37m | 10:20pm | 3:58am |
| Wed 10 | 5:50am | 8:36pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:54am |
| Sat 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:56am |
| Wed 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 10 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonThu 4, 1:16am
- Last QuarterWed 10, 8:16pm
- New MoonThu 18, 2:36am
- First QuarterFri 26, 6:51am
Perigee 7 Dec (366,900 km) · Apogee 23 Dec (405,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | 0.3 | 7:07am | 2:31pm | 9:53pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Lib | −3.7 | 4:31am | 11:37am | 6:44pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Lib | 1.6 | 4:12am | 11:18am | 6:24pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Tau | −2.6 | 8:15pm | 1:05am | 5:51am | All night |
| Saturn | Leo | 0.4 | 12:41am | 6:05am | 11:29am | Morning |
| Uranus | Gem | 5.5 | 10:15pm | 3:05am | 7:51am | Morning |
| Neptune | Psc | 7.8 | 3:36pm | 9:13pm | 2:55am | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Geminids — peaks 14 December, radiant in Gemini (up to 150/hr). The richest shower of the year; the radiant reaches a useful altitude after local midnight, so it rewards southern observers well. A thin 12% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A thin 19% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — December 2036
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.