The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2061
Highlights this month
- 1ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (11:14pm)
- 7WedVenus is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (1:27am)
- 13TueNeptune at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Taurus (mag 7.8). (3:25pm)
- 14WedGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A thin 5% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 16FriThe Moon passes Mars — 3° apart. (5:41am)
- 19MonSaturn at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Taurus (mag −0.6). (10:00pm)
- 21WedSummer solstice.
- 22ThuUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A bright 73% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 28WedVenus in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (1:17am)
- 29ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (6:25am)
- 29ThuMercury at greatest evening elongation (20° from the Sun, mag −0.6) — best evening apparition. (7:26pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 | 5:50am | 8:28pm | 14h 37m | 10:20pm | 3:58am |
| Sat 10 | 5:50am | 8:36pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:54am |
| 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 QuarterSun 4, 9:10am
- New MoonMon 12, 9:37am
- First QuarterTue 20, 11:03am
- Full Moon SupermoonTue 27, 3:55am
Apogee 12 Dec (406,300 km) · Perigee 26 Dec (356,900 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | −0.7 | 6:47am | 2:20pm | 9:52pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −4.3 | 7:18am | 2:38pm | 9:57pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Cap | 1.1 | 9:05am | 4:15pm | 11:25pm | Evening |
| Jupiter | Cnc | −2.3 | 11:23pm | 4:28am | 9:28am | Morning |
| Saturn | Tau | −0.6 | 8:46pm | 1:38am | 6:25am | All night |
| Uranus | Lib | 5.6 | 3:41am | 10:36am | 5:31pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Tau | 7.8 | 8:16pm | 1:09am | 5:58am | 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 thin 5% 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 73% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — December 2061
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 August 2026.