The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — April 2053
Highlights this month
- 5SatThe Moon passes Jupiter — 2° apart. (5:03am)
- 15TueThe Moon passes Saturn — 3° apart. (3:49pm)
- 21MonJupiter at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Virgo (mag −2.3). (5:39am)
- 23WedLyrids meteor shower peaks (up to 18/hr). A 26% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 7:34am | 7:13pm | 11h 39m | 8:40pm | 6:06am |
| Thu 10 | 6:42am | 5:59pm | 11h 17m | 7:27pm | 5:14am |
| Sun 20 | 6:52am | 5:45pm | 10h 54m | 7:14pm | 5:23am |
| Wed 30 | 7:01am | 5:33pm | 10h 32m | 7:02pm | 5:31am |
Days shorten by about 67 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonThu 3, 5:25pm
- Last QuarterFri 11, 4:02pm
- New MoonSat 19, 4:51am
- First QuarterFri 25, 9:05pm
Apogee 10 Apr (404,900 km) · Perigee 22 Apr (365,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Psc | −0.5 | 5:15am | 11:16am | 5:17pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Ari | −3.7 | 7:24am | 12:49pm | 6:15pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Tau | 1.4 | 12:02pm | 4:39pm | 9:15pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Vir | −2.3 | 6:08pm | 12:48am | 7:24am | All night |
| Saturn | Aqr | 1.0 | 3:06am | 9:37am | 4:07pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.4 | 4:50pm | 10:52pm | 4:59am | Evening |
| Neptune | Tau | 7.9 | 9:42am | 2:42pm | 7:42pm | Evening |
Meteor showers
- Lyrids — peaks 23 April, radiant in Lyra (up to 18/hr). A modest shower; the radiant is low in the north-east before dawn from Victoria. A 26% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — April 2053
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.