The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2174
Highlights this month
- 10SatMercury at greatest evening elongation (21° from the Sun, mag −0.4) — best evening apparition. (4:27pm)
- 14WedGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A bright 69% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 19MonMercury is stationary — begins retrograde (westward) motion. (12:08am)
- 22ThuSummer solstice.
- 22ThuUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A thin 4% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 24SatSaturn is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (6:59am)
- 28WedMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (1:42pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 | 5:50am | 8:27pm | 14h 37m | 10:19pm | 3:58am |
| Sat 10 | 5:49am | 8:35pm | 14h 46m | 10:30pm | 3:54am |
| Tue 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:55am |
| Sat 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:41pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 10 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterFri 2, 5:23am
- Full MoonFri 9, 12:23am
- Last QuarterFri 16, 5:19pm
- New MoonSat 24, 2:36pm
- First QuarterSat 31, 1:29pm
Perigee 5 Dec (367,600 km) · Apogee 17 Dec (404,800 km) · Perigee 30 Dec (369,700 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | −0.2 | 7:16am | 2:42pm | 10:07pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.7 | 7:36am | 3:01pm | 10:26pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Aqr | 0.7 | 11:05am | 5:50pm | 12:36am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Sgr | −1.7 | 8:17am | 3:32pm | 10:46pm | Hidden |
| Saturn | Psc | 0.4 | 3:17pm | 9:02pm | 2:50am | Evening |
| Uranus | Aqr | 5.9 | 12:18pm | 6:43pm | 1:12am | Evening |
| Neptune | Cap | 7.9 | 10:57am | 5:40pm | 12:28am | Evening |
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 69% 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 4% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — December 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.
Looking for an earlier month? Browse all past monthly guides →
Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 8 October 2026.