The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — May 2176
Highlights this month
- 1WedThe Moon passes Mars — 2° apart. (6:30am)
- 3FriSaturn in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (5:25pm)
- 6MonEta Aquariids meteor shower peaks (up to 50/hr). A thin 11% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 29WedThe Moon passes Mars — 5° apart. (10:33pm)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 7:02am | 5:32pm | 10h 30m | 7:01pm | 5:32am |
| Fri 10 | 7:10am | 5:22pm | 10h 12m | 6:53pm | 5:39am |
| Mon 20 | 7:19am | 5:14pm | 9h 55m | 6:47pm | 5:46am |
| Fri 31 | 7:27am | 5:08pm | 9h 41m | 6:42pm | 5:53am |
Days shorten by about 48 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterThu 2, 2:28pm
- New MoonThu 9, 10:33am
- First QuarterThu 16, 3:04am
- Full MoonFri 24, 2:57am
Perigee 9 May (357,000 km) · Apogee 23 May (406,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Ari | −0.4 | 5:27am | 10:57am | 4:26pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Tau | −3.8 | 7:44am | 12:41pm | 5:37pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Cap | −0.6 | 10:02pm | 5:17am | 12:30pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Psc | −1.9 | 2:24am | 8:34am | 2:44pm | Morning |
| Saturn | Ari | 0.2 | 6:23am | 11:39am | 4:55pm | Hidden |
| Uranus | Psc | 5.9 | 2:15am | 8:26am | 2:38pm | Morning |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.9 | 12:33am | 7:09am | 1:46pm | 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 thin 11% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — May 2176
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 9 October 2026.