The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2060
Highlights this month
- 5SunSaturn at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Taurus (mag −0.6). (6:21pm)
- 9ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 5° apart. (3:53am)
- 9ThuMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (4:04am)
- 11SatNeptune at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Taurus (mag 7.8). (4:38am)
- 14TueGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A 55% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 15WedThe Moon passes Mars — 0.2° apart. (8:16pm)
- 21TueSummer solstice.
- 22WedJupiter at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Gemini (mag −2.6). (10:12am)
- 22WedUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 5:50am | 8:28pm | 14h 38m | 10:21pm | 3:58am |
| Fri 10 | 5:50am | 8:36pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:54am |
| Mon 20 | 5:53am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:56am |
| Fri 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:04am |
Days lengthen by about 9 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterWed 1, 10:18am
- Full MoonWed 8, 1:48am
- Last QuarterWed 15, 4:15am
- New MoonThu 23, 9:44am
- First QuarterThu 30, 8:33pm
Perigee 6 Dec (359,400 km) · Apogee 18 Dec (405,600 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | −1.0 | 6:00am | 1:30pm | 9:01pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sco | −3.7 | 4:36am | 11:45am | 6:53pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Vir | 1.0 | 1:53am | 7:51am | 1:49pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Gem | −2.6 | 9:03pm | 1:52am | 6:35am | All night |
| Saturn | Tau | −0.5 | 7:34pm | 12:32am | 5:25am | All night |
| Uranus | Lib | 5.6 | 3:28am | 10:18am | 5:08pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Tau | 7.8 | 8:04pm | 12:58am | 5:48am | 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 55% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A thin 1% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — December 2060
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.