The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2057
Highlights this month
- 3MonThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (12:24pm)
- 4TueNeptune at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Taurus (mag 7.8). (7:56pm)
- 5WedMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (12:33am)
- 7FriThe Moon passes Saturn — 2° apart. (9:40am)
- 14FriGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A bright 91% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 14FriMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (5:44pm)
- 21FriSummer solstice.
- 22SatUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A thin 20% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 23SunMercury at greatest morning elongation (22° from the Sun, mag −0.4) — best morning apparition. (7:36pm)
- 27ThuVenus in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (6:07pm)
- 31MonThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (2:29am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 5:50am | 8:28pm | 14h 37m | 10:20pm | 3:58am |
| Mon 10 | 5:50am | 8:36pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:54am |
| 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 QuarterMon 3, 4:48pm
- Full MoonTue 11, 11:50am
- Last QuarterWed 19, 4:10pm
- New MoonWed 26, 12:25pm
Apogee 13 Dec (406,200 km) · Perigee 26 Dec (356,800 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sco | 0.1 | 4:55am | 11:57am | 7:00pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Oph | −3.8 | 5:40am | 1:02pm | 8:25pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Sgr | 1.3 | 6:31am | 1:58pm | 9:24pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Aqr | −2.1 | 12:02pm | 6:32pm | 1:05am | Evening |
| Saturn | Ari | 0.2 | 4:00pm | 9:34pm | 3:12am | Evening |
| Uranus | Vir | 5.6 | 2:53am | 9:28am | 4:02pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Tau | 7.8 | 7:32pm | 12:30am | 5:23am | All night |
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 91% 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 thin 20% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — December 2057
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.