I'm using Mac OS X 10.6.8, and usually start my game not by double-clicking the Oolite icon, but by double-clicking my save game. That has always worked on Mac OS (it may not work under Windows or Linux, I'm not sure). The result is that I get immediately to the F5-screen of my saved game without the spinning Cobra and the usual choice screens.
Now it happens that when I've started the game this way and launch, the main planet does not get lighted by the sun. It's night all around. This happens for all main planets, and regardless of installed planet texturing OXPs. Here's a screen shot showing the sun and a very dark planet that's clearly not illuminated by it:

The planet is in the upper left corner, in case you don't even see it against the dark backdrop.
When I go to the F7-screen, the planet appears correctly illuminated on that screen, and afterwards also in game. All subsequent planets are correctly illuminated from the get-go. So it's as if visiting the F7-screen once switches on the lighting.
This does not happen when I start Oolite by double-clicking the Oolite icon, and then load my game from the loading screen. In this case the lighting is correct from the beginning.
So it looks like starting by double-clicking the save-game circumvents a part of the code that is correctly executed when doing it the "correct" way.
I am not certain when I first encountered the unlighted planets. I guess in 1.77.1, but it could have been earlier.