Photo: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani
Just before the winter holidays officially kick off, the sky offers us a glamorous show of its own – the last full moon before the winter solstice, one that can be admired for a very long time, so there’s no excuse to miss it this weekend.
As soon as tonight, you can get a glimpse of this final full moon, ending a year of numerous beautiful celestial events, from super moons and meteor showers to rare eclipses. The official time of this full moon, according to NASA, is December 18, at 11:36 p.m. EST, but because it occurs so close to midnight, most calendars based on Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) will show it on Sunday, December 19.
This celestial event is extra special, not just because it’s the last full moon before the solstice but also because Saturday is the longest full moon night of the whole year. Its proximity to the solstice is what makes this event to be also known as the Long Night Moon. Starting Saturday evening until Sunday morning, the moon will be visible in the sky for 15 hours and 33 minutes.
Considering that during most of this time, the Sun will be down, this will become the longest full moon night of the year, giving everyone a chance to admire the Earth’s only natural satellite in all of its glory.
The celestial show is starting as soon as tonight, with the full moon visible until Monday morning, which makes this a full moon weekend. Plus, as the sun sets earlier during this time of the year, this beautiful phenomenon can be admired even earlier than usual.
Although climate change is making some of the traditional Native American names for full moons seem outdated, such as this Frost Moon or Cold Moon that’s not in line with the unusual temperatures for this time of the yearyear. Fortunately, it still is and will be the Long Night Moon. Before Christmas, we can still enjoy the longest night when the full moon is queen.
This celestial event is extra special, not just because it’s the last full moon before the solstice but also because Saturday is the longest full moon night of the whole year. Its proximity to the solstice is what makes this event to be also known as the Long Night Moon. Starting Saturday evening until Sunday morning, the moon will be visible in the sky for 15 hours and 33 minutes.
Considering that during most of this time, the Sun will be down, this will become the longest full moon night of the year, giving everyone a chance to admire the Earth’s only natural satellite in all of its glory.
The celestial show is starting as soon as tonight, with the full moon visible until Monday morning, which makes this a full moon weekend. Plus, as the sun sets earlier during this time of the year, this beautiful phenomenon can be admired even earlier than usual.
Although climate change is making some of the traditional Native American names for full moons seem outdated, such as this Frost Moon or Cold Moon that’s not in line with the unusual temperatures for this time of the yearyear. Fortunately, it still is and will be the Long Night Moon. Before Christmas, we can still enjoy the longest night when the full moon is queen.
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