The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2050
Highlights this month
- 2FriMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (4:50am)
- 10SatThe Moon passes Venus — 3° apart. (7:38pm)
- 12MonMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (12:04am)
- 14WedGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A thin 0% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 21WedThe Moon passes Mars — 4° apart. (2:14pm)
- 21WedMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (11:06pm)
- 22ThuSummer solstice.
- 22ThuUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A bright 62% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 22ThuJupiter is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (1:29pm)
- 27TueVenus at greatest morning elongation (47° from the Sun, mag −4.4) — best morning apparition. (11:55pm)
- 31SatUranus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (9:54am)
- 31SatMercury at greatest morning elongation (22° from the Sun, mag −0.3) — best morning apparition. (12:40pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 | 5:50am | 8:27pm | 14h 37m | 10:20pm | 3:58am |
| Sat 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:55am |
| Tue 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:56am |
| Sat 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 10 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterTue 6, 5:26pm
- New MoonWed 14, 4:21pm
- First QuarterWed 21, 3:18pm
- Full MoonWed 28, 4:16pm
Apogee 7 Dec (404,800 km) · Perigee 21 Dec (369,900 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Oph | 3.2 | 5:33am | 12:41pm | 7:48pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Vir | −4.6 | 3:28am | 10:07am | 4:46pm | Morning |
| Mars | Psc | 0.0 | 1:15pm | 7:25pm | 1:38am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Leo | −2.0 | 12:48am | 6:17am | 11:46am | Morning |
| Saturn | Cap | 0.6 | 9:11am | 4:18pm | 11:24pm | Evening |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.5 | 1:35am | 7:29am | 1:23pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Tau | 7.8 | 6:15pm | 11:20pm | 4:28am | 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 0% 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 bright 62% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — December 2050
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.