The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — January 2173
Highlights this month
- 4MonQuadrantids meteor shower peaks (up to 110/hr). A bright 79% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 13WedMercury at greatest evening elongation (19° from the Sun, mag −0.6) — best evening apparition. (10:43am)
- 18MonThe Moon passes Saturn — 2° apart. (9:14pm)
- 19TueMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (8:44pm)
- 29FriMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (6:49am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 1 | 6:00am | 8:46pm | 14h 46m | 10:41pm | 4:04am |
| Sun 10 | 6:08am | 8:46pm | 14h 38m | 10:38pm | 4:15am |
| Wed 20 | 6:18am | 8:42pm | 14h 23m | 10:30pm | 4:30am |
| Sun 31 | 6:31am | 8:34pm | 14h 03m | 10:17pm | 4:48am |
Days shorten by about 43 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterThu 7, 6:29pm
- New MoonThu 14, 11:21am
- First QuarterThu 21, 8:04am
- Full MoonFri 29, 12:20pm
Perigee 14 Jan (356,900 km) · Apogee 27 Jan (406,100 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Cap | −0.4 | 7:48am | 2:46pm | 9:44pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.8 | 5:45am | 1:05pm | 8:25pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Aqr | 1.1 | 9:30am | 4:07pm | 10:44pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Oph | −1.6 | 3:05am | 10:20am | 5:34pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Psc | 1.1 | 11:17am | 5:30pm | 11:43pm | Evening |
| Uranus | Aqr | 6.0 | 9:42am | 4:14pm | 10:47pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 8:36am | 3:23pm | 10:10pm | 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 bright 79% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — January 2173
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 7 October 2026.