The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2046
Highlights this month
- 2SunThe Moon passes Mars — 2° apart. (10:14am)
- 5WedJupiter is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (2:49am)
- 12WedUranus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (7:20am)
- 14FriGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A bright 99% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 17MonSaturn in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (9:18pm)
- 22SatSummer solstice.
- 22SatUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A 32% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 27ThuMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (1:22pm)
- 31MonThe Moon passes Mars — 4° apart. (2:11pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 5:50am | 8:27pm | 14h 37m | 10:20pm | 3:58am |
| Mon 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:55am |
| Thu 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:56am |
| Mon 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 10 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterWed 5, 7:04pm
- Full MoonThu 13, 8:57pm
- Last QuarterFri 21, 1:45am
- New MoonThu 27, 9:43pm
Apogee 8 Dec (405,100 km) · Perigee 23 Dec (368,500 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Oph | −0.9 | 5:22am | 12:46pm | 8:09pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.7 | 6:53am | 2:20pm | 9:47pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Cap | 1.0 | 9:39am | 4:43pm | 11:47pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Psc | −2.3 | 2:25pm | 8:19pm | 2:17am | Evening |
| Saturn | Oph | 0.3 | 6:06am | 1:24pm | 8:42pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Leo | 5.4 | 12:49am | 6:19am | 11:50am | Morning |
| Neptune | Ari | 7.8 | 5:30pm | 10:43pm | 4:00am | 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 99% 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 32% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — December 2046
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.