The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2179
Highlights this month
- 13MonUranus is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (1:35am)
- 14TueGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A bright 100% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 16ThuThe Moon passes Jupiter — 5° apart. (10:42pm)
- 22WedSummer solstice.
- 22WedUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A 42% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 25SatSaturn at opposition — closest and brightest of the year, up all night in Gemini (mag −0.6). (2:49am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 1 | 5:50am | 8:27pm | 14h 36m | 10:19pm | 3:58am |
| Fri 10 | 5:49am | 8:35pm | 14h 45m | 10:30pm | 3:54am |
| Mon 20 | 5:52am | 8:42pm | 14h 50m | 10:38pm | 3:55am |
| Fri 31 | 5:58am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:41pm | 4:03am |
Days lengthen by about 11 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterMon 6, 11:51am
- Full MoonTue 14, 4:05pm
- Last QuarterTue 21, 11:43pm
- New MoonTue 28, 6:13pm
Apogee 9 Dec (405,400 km) · Perigee 25 Dec (366,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | −0.8 | 6:25am | 1:57pm | 9:30pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Cap | −4.0 | 8:56am | 4:12pm | 11:27pm | Evening |
| Mars | Sco | 1.6 | 4:37am | 11:49am | 7:01pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Gem | −2.5 | 10:13pm | 3:05am | 7:52am | Morning |
| Saturn | Gem | −0.6 | 9:11pm | 2:02am | 6:49am | All night |
| Uranus | Psc | 5.9 | 1:56pm | 7:56pm | 2:00am | Evening |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.9 | 11:51am | 6:23pm | 12:59am | 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 100% 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 42% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
The solar system — December 2179
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.