The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2043
Highlights this month
- 4FriThe Moon passes Venus — 3° apart. (8:20pm)
- 9WedMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (7:42am)
- 14MonGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A bright 93% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 18FriMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (11:37pm)
- 22TueSummer solstice.
- 22TueUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A bright 60% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 22TueThe Moon passes Mars — 2° apart. (11:24pm)
- 29TueMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (4:38am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 5:51am | 8:27pm | 14h 37m | 10:19pm | 3:59am |
| Thu 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:55am |
| Sun 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:55am |
| Thu 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 11 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonWed 2, 1:41am
- First QuarterThu 10, 2:32am
- Full Moon SupermoonWed 16, 7:04pm
- Last QuarterWed 23, 4:05pm
- New MoonThu 31, 8:49pm
Apogee 2 Dec (406,300 km) · Perigee 16 Dec (357,100 km) · Apogee 29 Dec (406,100 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | 3.3 | 6:31am | 1:49pm | 9:06pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.8 | 8:15am | 3:36pm | 10:58pm | Evening |
| Mars | Leo | 0.7 | 1:30am | 7:12am | 12:55pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Sgr | −1.7 | 7:08am | 2:29pm | 9:50pm | Hidden |
| Saturn | Lib | 0.4 | 4:20am | 11:17am | 6:15pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Leo | 5.4 | 12:11am | 5:25am | 10:39am | Morning |
| Neptune | Ari | 7.8 | 4:57pm | 10:17pm | 3:41am | 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 bright 93% Moon interferes badly this year.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A bright 60% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — December 2043
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.