The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2105
Highlights this month
- 13SunVenus in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (6:38am)
- 14MonGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A 46% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 20SunSaturn in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (5:20am)
- 22TueSummer solstice.
- 22TueUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A bright 99% Moon interferes badly this year.
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 5:50am | 8:27pm | 14h 36m | 10:19pm | 3:58am |
| Thu 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 45m | 10:30pm | 3:55am |
| Sun 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:55am |
| Thu 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 11 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonMon 7, 1:20am
- First QuarterTue 15, 1:41am
- Full Moon SupermoonMon 21, 6:21pm
- Last QuarterMon 28, 3:21pm
Apogee 6 Dec (406,300 km) · Perigee 21 Dec (357,200 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Oph | −0.8 | 5:14am | 12:34pm | 7:55pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Oph | −3.9 | 5:53am | 1:17pm | 8:41pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Leo | 0.3 | 1:03am | 6:31am | 11:58am | Morning |
| Jupiter | Psc | −2.2 | 1:36pm | 7:43pm | 1:54am | Evening |
| Saturn | Sgr | 0.3 | 6:15am | 1:33pm | 8:51pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Ari | 5.7 | 5:12pm | 10:25pm | 3:41am | Evening |
| Neptune | Vir | 7.9 | 1:51am | 7:50am | 1:48pm | 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 46% 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 bright 99% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — December 2105
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 4 September 2026.