The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — December 2185
Highlights this month
- 2FriNeptune is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (12:17pm)
- 9FriMercury in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (2:00pm)
- 14WedGeminids meteor shower peaks (up to 150/hr). A 46% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- 21WedSummer solstice.
- 22ThuUrsids meteor shower peaks (up to 10/hr). A thin 0% Moon leaves the sky dark.
- 27TueJupiter in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (7:50am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 | 5:50am | 8:27pm | 14h 37m | 10:20pm | 3:58am |
| Sat 10 | 5:50am | 8:35pm | 14h 46m | 10:31pm | 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
- Full Moon SupermoonWed 7, 3:18pm
- Last QuarterWed 14, 8:02am
- New MoonThu 22, 8:29am
- First QuarterFri 30, 9:52am
Perigee 8 Dec (357,000 km) · Apogee 22 Dec (406,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Sgr | −1.0 | 5:59am | 1:29pm | 8:59pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Sgr | −3.8 | 6:18am | 1:44pm | 9:10pm | Hidden |
| Mars | Sgr | 1.2 | 7:35am | 2:58pm | 10:21pm | Hidden |
| Jupiter | Sgr | −1.7 | 6:33am | 1:55pm | 9:17pm | Hidden |
| Saturn | Vir | 1.0 | 1:47am | 7:40am | 1:34pm | Morning |
| Uranus | Psc | 5.8 | 3:52pm | 9:23pm | 2:57am | Evening |
| Neptune | Aqr | 7.9 | 12:54pm | 7:11pm | 1:31am | 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 46% Moon washes out fainter meteors for part of the night.
- Ursids — peaks 22 December, radiant in Ursa Minor (up to 10/hr). A circumpolar northern shower whose radiant never rises from Victoria. A thin 0% Moon leaves the sky dark.
The solar system — December 2185
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 14 October 2026.