The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — July 2161
Highlights this month
- 3FriThe Moon passes Saturn — 5° apart. (5:45pm)
- 4SatMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (5:03am)
- 5SunThe Moon passes Jupiter — 0.0° apart. (1:36am)
- 14TueUranus at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Sagittarius (mag 5.7). (11:45pm)
- 20MonSaturn is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (9:24pm)
- 21TueThe Moon passes Venus — 4° apart. (6:13am)
- 21TueNeptune at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Sagittarius (mag 7.8). (9:28pm)
- 30ThuSouthern Delta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 25/hr). A 57% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 30ThuAlpha Capricornids meteor shower peaks (up to 5/hr). A 57% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 30ThuThe Moon passes Saturn — 3° apart. (6:03pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 7:38am | 5:11pm | 9h 33m | 6:45pm | 6:03am |
| Fri 10 | 7:36am | 5:16pm | 9h 40m | 6:49pm | 6:02am |
| Mon 20 | 7:31am | 5:23pm | 9h 52m | 6:55pm | 5:58am |
| Fri 31 | 7:22am | 5:31pm | 10h 09m | 7:02pm | 5:51am |
Days lengthen by about 36 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Full MoonTue 7, 11:33pm
- Last QuarterThu 16, 12:05am
- New MoonThu 23, 10:13am
- First QuarterThu 30, 1:21am
Apogee 13 Jul (405,100 km) · Perigee 25 Jul (363,400 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Cnc | −1.0 | 8:26am | 1:21pm | 6:17pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Tau | −3.7 | 5:10am | 10:01am | 2:52pm | Morning |
| Mars | Aqr | −1.6 | 9:29pm | 4:05am | 10:39am | Morning |
| Jupiter | Sco | −2.2 | 1:51pm | 9:02pm | 4:17am | Evening |
| Saturn | Lib | 0.3 | 12:54pm | 7:43pm | 2:35am | Evening |
| Uranus | Sgr | 5.7 | 5:06pm | 12:26am | 7:43am | All night |
| Neptune | Sgr | 7.8 | 5:42pm | 12:54am | 8:02am | All night |
Meteor showers
- Southern Delta Aquariids — peaks 30 July, radiant in Aquarius (up to 25/hr). A favourite southern shower with a high radiant — steady rates through the small hours; overlaps the Alpha Capricornids. A 57% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- Alpha Capricornids — peaks 30 July, radiant in Capricornus (up to 5/hr). Low rates but noted for slow, bright fireballs; radiant well placed from the south. A 57% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — July 2161
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.
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Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 2 October 2026.