The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — January 2109
Highlights this month
- 4FriQuadrantids meteor shower peaks (up to 110/hr). A thin 9% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 8TueNeptune is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:33pm)
- 10ThuJupiter at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Gemini (mag −2.5). (6:19pm)
- 11FriMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (6:44am)
- 16WedThe Moon passes Jupiter — 5° apart. (10:19pm)
- 22TueMercury at greatest morning elongation (24° from the Sun, mag −0.2) — best morning apparition. (8:10am)
- 22TueSaturn in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (11:10am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 6:00am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:04am |
| Thu 10 | 6:08am | 8:46pm | 14h 38m | 10:39pm | 4:15am |
| Sun 20 | 6:18am | 8:42pm | 14h 24m | 10:31pm | 4:29am |
| Thu 31 | 6:31am | 8:35pm | 14h 04m | 10:18pm | 4:47am |
Days shorten by about 43 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonTue 1, 9:02pm
- First QuarterWed 9, 4:29pm
- Full MoonThu 17, 11:31am
- Last QuarterThu 24, 8:42am
- New MoonThu 31, 11:51am
Apogee 9 Jan (404,700 km) · Perigee 22 Jan (369,000 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | −0.0 | 4:38am | 11:51am | 7:05pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.7 | 5:22am | 12:44pm | 8:06pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Cap | 1.2 | 8:52am | 3:39pm | 10:25pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Gem | −2.5 | 8:16pm | 1:08am | 5:55am | All night |
| Saturn | Cap | 0.4 | 6:45am | 1:55pm | 9:05pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Tau | 5.7 | 4:09pm | 9:10pm | 2:14am | Evening |
| Neptune | Vir | 7.9 | 12:05am | 6:11am | 12:18pm | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Quadrantids — peaks 4 January, radiant in Boötes (up to 110/hr). Radiant stays below the horizon from Victoria — essentially a no-show this far south. A thin 9% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — January 2109
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 5 September 2026.