The new year will begin with a supermoon. Here’s when to see it

Giant moons tend to appear in groups, and Earth has just seen three moons in a row. It dates back to October. The last supermoon in this sequence will occur on January 3, and it also happens to be the first supermoon of 2026. Sky watchers will want to catch this one, because the next one won’t happen until November.

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The Moon tends to spend three to four months at a time at perigee, a fancy term meaning it is as close to Earth as its elliptical orbit allows. During this time, humans refer to full moons as supermoons. Because the Moon is actually closer to Earth than it normally is, the full moon appears brighter and larger in the sky.

The difference can be a moon that is up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than a minimoon, which occurs when the moon is at its apogee, or at its furthest point from Earth. This brightness is the real difference, as the supermoon is bright enough to light up your backyard, especially if there is snow on the ground.

The odds of this are pretty good, as it is Snow is expected In a few parts of the United States between Christmas and New Year’s Eve.

To see the Moon at its brightest, you will need to stay up late on January 2nd or wake up very early on January 3rd. Farmer’s AlmanacJanuary’s supermoon will rise from the eastern horizon and stretch across the sky to settle in the west at sunrise. The moon will reach peak illumination at 5:03 a.m. ET. It should still be dark outside for the entire United States during this time, so everyone will have a chance to see it.

If you find that’s not possible due to weather or other conjunctions, the Wolf Moon will be over 90% full from December 31 to January 5, giving you nearly a week of almost maximum lighting.

Since the Moon is the largest and brightest object in the night sky, you also don’t need any special magnification devices to see it. However, a good pair of binoculars or a telescope makes it possible Details of the moon’s surface are easier to seeIt helps photographers take pictures Some great moon shots.

The full moon in January is called the “wolf moon” due to increased wolf activity during this time. January doesn’t just mark the start of wolves Winter mating seasonBut wolves usually are More active At dusk and dawn. Dusk is very early in the day, especially right after Winter solstice. In the past, this meant that people were more likely to see a wolf or hear wolves howling during January.