The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — January 2166
Highlights this month
- 1WedSaturn in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (9:14pm)
- 4SatQuadrantids meteor shower peaks (up to 110/hr). A thin 5% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 10FriThe Moon passes Jupiter — 2° apart. (12:41am)
- 20MonMercury at greatest evening elongation (19° from the Sun, mag −0.6) — best evening apparition. (7:52pm)
- 26SunMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:53pm)
- 28TueThe Moon passes Venus — 5° apart. (5:57am)
- 29WedNeptune in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (8:52am)
- 31FriUranus in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (8:23am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 6:00am | 8:46pm | 14h 46m | 10:41pm | 4:04am |
| Fri 10 | 6:08am | 8:46pm | 14h 38m | 10:38pm | 4:15am |
| Mon 20 | 6:18am | 8:42pm | 14h 24m | 10:30pm | 4:30am |
| Fri 31 | 6:31am | 8:34pm | 14h 04m | 10:17pm | 4:47am |
Days shorten by about 43 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonThu 2, 5:16pm
- First QuarterThu 9, 1:00pm
- Full MoonThu 16, 6:26pm
- Last QuarterFri 24, 10:05pm
Perigee 6 Jan (367,600 km) · Apogee 22 Jan (405,200 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Cap | −0.8 | 7:38am | 2:43pm | 9:46pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Oph | −4.7 | 3:18am | 10:18am | 5:19pm | Morning |
| Mars | Gem | −1.2 | 7:27pm | 11:59pm | 4:26am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Psc | −2.2 | 1:44pm | 7:18pm | 12:55am | Evening |
| Saturn | Sgr | 0.4 | 5:18am | 12:36pm | 7:54pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Cap | 5.9 | 7:29am | 2:32pm | 9:34pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Cap | 8.0 | 7:23am | 2:25pm | 9:26pm | Hidden |
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 5% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — January 2166
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 October 2026.