Full Moon December 2025: Cold Supermoon Lights Up the Sky Tonight
The full moon December 2025 peaks tonight with a brilliant Cold Supermoon, the year’s final full phase arriving at 23:14 UTC on Thursday, December 4. Because the Moon is near perigee, it appears a touch larger and brighter than average—perfect timing for dramatic moonrise photos and a crisp, high winter arc across the sky in northern latitudes.
Full Moon December 2025: Exact peak times by region
The moment of full illumination is the same instant worldwide; local clocks vary. Here’s the conversion for key regions:
| Region | Local Date | Local Time |
|---|---|---|
| USA/Canada (ET) | Thu, Dec 4 | 6:14 p.m. |
| USA/Canada (CT) | Thu, Dec 4 | 5:14 p.m. |
| USA/Canada (MT) | Thu, Dec 4 | 4:14 p.m. |
| USA/Canada (PT) | Thu, Dec 4 | 3:14 p.m. |
| UK (GMT) | Thu, Dec 4 | 11:14 p.m. |
| Central Europe (CET) | Fri, Dec 5 | 12:14 a.m. |
| Egypt (EET/Cairo) | Fri, Dec 5 | 1:14 a.m. |
| Gulf (GST) | Fri, Dec 5 | 3:14 a.m. |
| India (IST) | Fri, Dec 5 | 4:44 a.m. |
| Australia (AEST) | Fri, Dec 5 | 9:14 a.m. |
Moonrise and set vary by city; the table reflects the full phase instant.
Why the December 2025 full moon is a supermoon
A supermoon occurs when full phase aligns closely with the Moon’s nearest point to Earth in its elliptical orbit. Tonight’s Cold Moon sits at roughly ~357,000 km from Earth, making it subtly larger and up to around 10–16% brighter than a run-of-the-mill full moon. The change is most striking at moonrise, when foreground landmarks and the atmospheric “moon illusion” exaggerate its size to the eye.
Where to look and what you’ll see
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Direction: Face east around your local moonrise to catch the Moon clearing the horizon in a warm orange hue.
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High winter arc: Near the December solstice, the full Moon rides high for the Northern Hemisphere, staying up all night and casting crisp shadows under clear skies.
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Starry backdrop: The Moon sits in Taurus, wandering near the glittering Pleiades and Hyades clusters through the night—great targets for wide-field photography.
Viewing and photography tips for the Cold Supermoon
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Scout the horizon: Waterfronts, hilltops, parks, and rooftops with an unobstructed eastern view deliver the most photogenic rise.
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Use foregrounds: Frame the Moon with buildings, trees, or monuments to emphasize scale and drama.
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Dial in exposure: Start around ISO 100–200, 1/250–1/500 s, f/5.6–f/8 for a higher Moon; slow the shutter slightly near the horizon. Lock focus manually to avoid hunting.
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Stabilize: A tripod (or a steady surface for a phone) keeps crater detail crisp and avoids motion blur.
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Mind the glare: As the Moon climbs, reduce exposure to preserve texture; spot-metering on the lunar disk helps avoid a blown-out highlight.
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Dress for the chill: Clear, cold nights are common with winter high pressure—layer up and bring hand warmers if you linger for time-lapse shots.
Cold Moon names and seasonal context
The Cold Moon reflects the onset of long, dark nights in the Northern Hemisphere. You may also hear Long Night Moon or Oak Moon in certain traditions. South of the equator, the season differs, but the spectacle is the same—tonight’s full Moon gleams through early summer skies.
What’s next after the full moon December 2025
Following tonight’s peak, the Moon begins to wane, reaching last quarter in about a week and new Moon later in the month. That timing is friendly for mid-December’s Geminid meteor shower, as the Moon sets earlier each night, leaving darker windows for stargazing around the shower’s peak.
Clear skies or not, the full moon December 2025 is a fitting, luminous finale to the lunar year—one last supermoon to cap the calendar and light up the early winter night.
