The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2085
Highlights this month
- 4TueJupiter is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (9:32am)
- 13ThuSaturn is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (9:06pm)
- 14FriGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A thin 8% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 20ThuVenus in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (1:46pm)
- 21FriSummer solstice.
- 22SatUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A 33% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 | 5:50am | 8:28pm | 14h 38m | 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 | 4:04am |
Days lengthen by about 9 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonSat 1, 7:14pm
- Last QuarterSun 9, 4:50pm
- New MoonMon 17, 9:40am
- First QuarterMon 24, 4:42am
- Full MoonMon 31, 11:05am
Apogee 9 Dec (404,800 km) · Perigee 21 Dec (367,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Oph | −0.7 | 5:06am | 12:24pm | 7:43pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.7 | 6:31am | 1:50pm | 9:09pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Oph | 1.5 | 4:50am | 12:06pm | 7:23pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Cnc | −2.2 | 11:52pm | 5:05am | 10:15am | Morning |
| Saturn | Psc | 0.6 | 2:26pm | 8:22pm | 2:23am | Evening |
| Uranus | Cap | 5.9 | 10:34am | 5:23pm | 12:16am | Evening |
| Neptune | Cnc | 7.8 | 11:45pm | 4:59am | 10:09am | 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 33% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — December 2085
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 27 August 2026.