The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2080
Highlights this month
- 3TueMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (10:55am)
- 14SatGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A thin 8% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 15SunThe Moon passes Venus — 2° apart. (11:24pm)
- 16MonThe Moon passes Saturn — 3° apart. (1:08am)
- 16MonThe Moon passes Jupiter — 2° apart. (3:22pm)
- 16MonVenus and Saturn in conjunction — 1° apart. (7:59pm)
- 18WedThe Moon passes Mars — 0.8° apart. (6:06am)
- 21SatSummer solstice.
- 22SunUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A bright 76% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 24TueVenus at greatest evening elongation (47° from the Sun, mag −4.4) — best evening apparition. (8:59pm)
- 25WedVenus and Jupiter in conjunction — 0.8° apart. (1:01am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1 | 5:50am | 8:28pm | 14h 38m | 10:21pm | 3:58am |
| Tue 10 | 5:50am | 8:36pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 3:54am |
| Fri 20 | 5:53am | 8:43pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:56am |
| Tue 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:04am |
Days lengthen by about 9 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterWed 4, 9:54am
- New MoonWed 11, 6:11pm
- First QuarterThu 19, 10:26pm
- Full MoonFri 27, 4:12am
Perigee 1 Dec (366,000 km) · Apogee 16 Dec (405,400 km) · Perigee 28 Dec (360,800 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | −0.9 | 6:13am | 1:44pm | 9:16pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Cap | −4.3 | 9:29am | 4:37pm | 11:45pm | Evening |
| Mars | Aqr | 0.6 | 11:40am | 6:15pm | 12:52am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Cap | −1.9 | 10:13am | 5:08pm | 12:05am | Evening |
| Saturn | Cap | 0.6 | 9:39am | 4:40pm | 11:42pm | Evening |
| Uranus | Cap | 5.9 | 8:56am | 4:05pm | 11:13pm | Evening |
| Neptune | Cnc | 7.8 | 11:08pm | 4:12am | 9:12am | Morning |
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 8% 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 76% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — December 2080
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 25 August 2026.