The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — August 2176
Highlights this month
- 5MonMars at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Capricornus (mag −2.8). (11:36am)
- 7WedMercury in inferior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (7:15am)
- 7WedThe Moon passes Venus — 4° apart. (6:07pm)
- 13TuePerseids meteor shower peaks (up to 100/hr). A 58% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 16FriMercury is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (8:33pm)
- 25SunNeptune at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Aquarius (mag 7.8). (3:16am)
- 25SunMercury at greatest morning elongation (18° from the Sun, mag −0.1) — best morning apparition. (9:21am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 | 7:21am | 5:32pm | 10h 12m | 7:03pm | 5:50am |
| Sat 10 | 7:11am | 5:40pm | 10h 29m | 7:10pm | 5:42am |
| Tue 20 | 6:59am | 5:49pm | 10h 50m | 7:17pm | 5:30am |
| Sat 31 | 6:43am | 5:58pm | 11h 15m | 7:26pm | 5:15am |
Days lengthen by about 63 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- New MoonMon 5, 9:08am
- First QuarterMon 12, 9:39pm
- Full MoonTue 20, 9:12pm
- Last QuarterTue 27, 9:26pm
Perigee 2 Aug (365,400 km) · Apogee 14 Aug (404,900 km) · Perigee 28 Aug (369,700 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Cnc | 2.4 | 6:15am | 11:31am | 4:47pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Leo | −3.7 | 8:29am | 2:20pm | 8:12pm | Evening |
| Mars | Cap | −2.7 | 4:18pm | 11:42pm | 7:11am | All night |
| Jupiter | Psc | −2.6 | 8:46pm | 2:54am | 8:58am | Morning |
| Saturn | Tau | 0.1 | 1:03am | 6:12am | 11:20am | Morning |
| Uranus | Psc | 5.8 | 8:09pm | 2:25am | 8:36am | Morning |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.8 | 6:22pm | 1:04am | 7:41am | Morning |
Meteor showers
- Perseids — peaks 13 August, radiant in Perseus (up to 100/hr). The famous northern shower, but its far-northern radiant scarcely rises from Victoria — only a trickle this far south. A 58% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — August 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.