The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2178
Highlights this month
- 3ThuJupiter at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Taurus (mag −2.7). (8:28am)
- 8TueUranus is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (8:27pm)
- 10ThuSaturn at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Taurus (mag −0.6). (10:36pm)
- 14MonGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A thin 23% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 18FriMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (7:31pm)
- 22TueSummer solstice.
- 22TueUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A bright 92% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 24ThuThe Moon passes Saturn — 3° apart. (4:13am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 | 5:50am | 8:27pm | 14h 37m | 10:19pm | 3:58am |
| Thu 10 | 5:49am | 8:35pm | 14h 46m | 10:30pm | 3:54am |
| Sun 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:39pm | 3:55am |
| Thu 31 | 5:59am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:41pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 10 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- Last QuarterWed 2, 7:11pm
- New MoonWed 9, 6:15pm
- First QuarterThu 17, 4:38pm
- Full MoonFri 25, 8:35am
Perigee 3 Dec (369,900 km) · Apogee 16 Dec (404,800 km) · Perigee 28 Dec (366,900 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Oph | −1.1 | 5:39am | 1:06pm | 8:34pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Lib | −4.2 | 3:30am | 10:11am | 4:52pm | Morning |
| Mars | Psc | −0.9 | 3:52pm | 9:20pm | 2:51am | Evening |
| Jupiter | Tau | −2.6 | 7:21pm | 12:17am | 5:09am | All night |
| Saturn | Tau | −0.6 | 8:00pm | 12:55am | 5:46am | All night |
| Uranus | Psc | 5.9 | 1:35pm | 7:40pm | 1:50am | Evening |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.9 | 11:40am | 6:14pm | 12:52am | 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 thin 23% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A bright 92% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — December 2178
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 10 October 2026.