The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — May 2174
Highlights this month
- 6FriEta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 50/hr). A 26% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 8SunMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (12:42pm)
- 9MonJupiter is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (11:05pm)
- 13FriVenus and Saturn in conjunction — 0.6° apart. (6:39am)
- 20FriMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (8:46pm)
- 21SatThe Moon passes Jupiter — 4° apart. (6:50am)
- 30MonMars at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Ophiuchus (mag −2.1). (10:19am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1 | 7:01am | 5:32pm | 10h 31m | 7:02pm | 5:32am |
| Tue 10 | 7:10am | 5:23pm | 10h 13m | 6:54pm | 5:39am |
| Fri 20 | 7:18am | 5:15pm | 9h 56m | 6:47pm | 5:46am |
| Tue 31 | 7:27am | 5:09pm | 9h 42m | 6:42pm | 5:53am |
Days shorten by about 49 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonSun 1, 6:32pm
- First QuarterMon 9, 6:34am
- Full MoonTue 17, 6:41am
- Last QuarterTue 24, 7:05am
- New MoonTue 31, 4:35am
Apogee 10 May (404,900 km) · Perigee 25 May (369,500 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Ari | 4.1 | 6:20am | 11:36am | 4:51pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Psc | −3.7 | 4:39am | 10:18am | 3:57pm | Morning |
| Mars | Oph | −1.7 | 6:11pm | 1:38am | 8:59am | Morning |
| Jupiter | Sgr | −2.2 | 9:06pm | 4:25am | 11:40am | Morning |
| Saturn | Psc | 0.6 | 4:29am | 10:11am | 3:53pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Aqr | 5.9 | 1:39am | 8:00am | 2:21pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.9 | 12:14am | 6:54am | 1:35pm | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Eta Aquariids — peaks 6 May, radiant in Aquarius (up to 50/hr). Debris of Halley's Comet and one of the best showers of the year from the south — swift meteors in the pre-dawn eastern sky. A 26% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — May 2174
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 8 October 2026.