Summer
January 2027
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 22 January.
New Moon 8 January.
Dark nights 27 December to 11 January, then 25 January to 10 February.
- 27 December to 11 January
- 25 January to 10 February
Mid Month Sky Snapshot
Sunset, twilight and the Moon on the 15th, from Siding Spring Observatory (SSO).
- Sunset
- 8:11 pm
- Civil twilight
- 8:38 pm
- Astronomical twilight
- 9:46 pm
- Moon on the 15th
- First Quarter, 45% lit
- Moonrise
- 12:40 pm
- Moonset
- 12:04 am
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.
Mars. North-east later in the evening.
Jupiter. North-east later in the evening.
Saturn. North-west after sunset, west 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. Southern Cross and Pointers
South-east later in the evening.
Naked eye.
2. Orion Nebula
North-east through the early night.
Binoculars or a small telescope help.
3. Carina and Eta Carinae
South-east through the early night.
Naked eye. Binoculars help with the nebula.
4. Jewel Box
South-east later in the evening.
Binoculars or a small telescope help.
5. Tarantula and the Large Magellanic Cloud
South through the early night.
Naked eye. Binoculars help with the Tarantula.
6. Small Magellanic Cloud
South through the early night.
Naked eye. Binoculars help.
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.