The December 2024 full moon is coming soon, bringing a lunar rarity

On By Littum

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The skies are offering an early Christmas present this weekend: The last full moon of the year, known as the Cold Moon, will appear early on Sunday, December 15.

Although the moon will officially be full on Sunday, it will still look very full in the night sky on both Saturday and Monday.

This month’s full moon will also feature a lunar rarity: According TimeandDate.comthe full moon on December 15, 2024, will rise and set at its most extreme northern points on the horizon – the result of a cycle that occurs every 18.6 years.

A lunar rarity: The moon reaches its northernmost point on the horizon

The Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles reports that every 18.6 years our moon reaches the extremes of its orbit around Earth. “We observe this as the moon rises and settles in its northernmost and southernmost positions on the horizon,” the Observatory said in a statement.

On December 15th, we will observe the Moon rising as far north as it ever does said the observatory. This happens during what is known as the “great lunar phase”.

What is the ‘Great Moon Phase’

The great lunar standstill is due to the rotation of the moon’s tilted orbit over an 18.6-year cycle, the observatory said.

It appears, Space.com said because the moon does not follow the same path as the sun. “Its rising and setting positions on the horizon are constantly changing due to the movements of the Earth and the moon,” Space.com reported.

The Chimney Rock (Colorado) Interpretive Association explains further: “The Moon’s orbit around the Earth oscillates, or wobbles, gradually causing the Moon to rise at different points on the horizon over the years. The entire cycle of wobbles north to south and north again takes 18.6 years.

“At each end of its swing, the moon appears to pause for about three years, rising at the same point on the horizon before beginning to move back toward the opposite end of the swing. This pause is known as a major the stillness of the moon.”

When is the full moon?

December’s full moon will reach peak illumination on Sunday, December 15 at 4:02 a.m. EST, according to the old farmer’s almanac.

Why is it called the cold moon?

December’s full moon is best known as the cold moon, which is “a Mohawk name that conveys the cold conditions at this time of year when cold weather really begins to grip us,” The Old Farmer’s Almanac said.

NASA agrees, adding that “the Cold Moon gets its name because December is the month when it really starts to get cold, even though our coldest average temperatures are in January.”

It is also called ‘the long night moon’

Another name for the December moon is the long night moon, due to its proximity to the winter solstice, which marks the longest night of the year.

The winter solstice this year is Saturday 21 December at 4:19 AM EST.

When is the first full moon in 2025?

January’s full moon, the first of 2025, will rise on Monday, January 13. It is called the wolf moon, as the wolves’ howls were more likely to be heard in winter, per Almanac.

Contributor: Cailey Gleeson, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel; Iris Seaton, The Asheville Citizen Times