Spring
October 2026
Times are computed for Coonabarabran / Siding Spring Observatory (SSO), latitude 31.27 south, longitude 149.06 east. Timezone Australia/Sydney. Early night means sunset until four hours after sunset. That is the window most guided night tours actually use.
Moon
Full Moon 26 October.
New Moon 11 October.
Dark nights 30 September to 14 October, then again after 29 October.
- 30 September to 14 October
- 29 October to 12 November
Mid Month Sky Snapshot
Sunset, twilight and the Moon on the 15th, from Siding Spring Observatory (SSO).
- Sunset
- 7:14 pm
- Civil twilight
- 7:39 pm
- Astronomical twilight
- 8:38 pm
- Moon on the 15th
- Waxing Crescent, 21% lit
- Moonrise
- 8:51 am
- Moonset
- 11:46 pm
Early night planets
Only planets that stand at least about 10 degrees above the horizon at some point between sunset and four hours after sunset. Morning-only planets are not listed.
Mercury. Low in the west after sunset. Catch it early.
Venus. Low in the west after sunset.
Saturn. East after sunset, north-east later in the evening.
Worth looking at
Short list for the same early-night window. Objects operators actually point at, not a catalogue dump.
1. Milky Way / Celestial Emu
West through the early night.
Naked eye. Best on Dark Nights.
2. Southern Cross and Pointers
South-west after sunset.
Naked eye.
3. Omega Centauri
South-west after sunset.
A glow to the naked eye. Binoculars help.
4. Jewel Box
South-west after sunset.
Binoculars or a small telescope help.
5. Lagoon and Trifid
West through the early night.
Binoculars or a small telescope help.
6. Tarantula and the Large Magellanic Cloud
South-east later in the evening.
Naked eye. Binoculars help with the Tarantula.
This page is a sky clock. Pick your time to visit. We wish you clear skies. No guarantees with the weather.
Figures are for the 15th of the month.