The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2117
Highlights this month
- 2ThuMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (12:26pm)
- 3FriThe Moon passes Jupiter — 1° apart. (1:58pm)
- 10FriMercury at greatest morning elongation (21° from the Sun, mag −0.5) — best morning apparition. (6:53pm)
- 11SatVenus in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (2:20pm)
- 14TueGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A bright 75% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 22WedSummer solstice.
- 22WedUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A thin 2% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 27MonUranus at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Gemini (mag 5.5). (12:49pm)
- 31FriThe Moon passes Jupiter — 2° apart. (1:13am)
- 31FriVenus is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (3:14pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 5:50am | 8:27pm | 14h 37m | 10:19pm | 3:58am |
| Fri 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 46m | 10:30pm | 3:55am |
| Mon 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:55am |
| Fri 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 11 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterWed 1, 12:05pm
- Full MoonThu 9, 4:37pm
- Last QuarterFri 17, 12:51am
- New MoonThu 23, 6:46pm
- First QuarterFri 31, 9:15am
Apogee 4 Dec (405,400 km) · Perigee 20 Dec (366,000 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sco | −0.5 | 4:44am | 11:50am | 6:57pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Oph | −3.6 | 5:33am | 12:47pm | 8:01pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Oph | 1.5 | 5:02am | 12:21pm | 7:39pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Psc | −2.3 | 2:00pm | 8:01pm | 2:06am | Evening |
| Saturn | Ari | −0.2 | 5:24pm | 10:40pm | 4:00am | Evening |
| Uranus | Gem | 5.5 | 9:26pm | 2:12am | 6:54am | All night |
| Neptune | Vir | 8.0 | 2:56am | 9:25am | 3:54pm | 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 bright 75% Moon interferes badly this year.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A thin 2% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — December 2117
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 8 September 2026.