The last full supermoon of 2025, known as the Cold Moon, will illuminate the late autumn sky on Thursday, Dec. 4.
When and how to view the Cold Moon supermoon
Skywatchers in the Northern Hemisphere will be able to see the supermoon starting at sunset when it rises in the east, and the moon will be at its highest path and brightest around midnight, according to the U.S. Naval Observation Astronomical Applications Department.
The full moon will fall at 6:14 p.m. EST.
A 97 percent illuminated Cold Moon rises behind the EdgeNYC outdoor observation deck at Hudson Yards as the sun sets in New York City on December 13, 2024.
Photo by Gary Hershorn/Getty Images
See more details here on Thursday night’s moon via NASA’s Daily Moon Guide.
What is a supermoon?
NASA defines a supermoon as the occurrence “when a full moon coincides with the moon’s closest approach to Earth in its elliptical orbit,” which is also known as perigee.
Lunar perigee happens at about 226,000 miles from Earth every 27-day orbit period, according to NASA.
The agency notes that the term supermoon, though not an official astronomical term, describes, “a full Moon that comes within at least 90 percent of perigee.”
Viewing a supermoon is special because they only occur three to four times a year, according to NASA.
How does a Cold Moon gets its name?
Moons can earn a variety of monikers and nicknames, but per the Farmer’s Almanac, are derived from “centuries of Native American, colonial, and European traditions.”
The Cold Moon — as this December full moon is commonly to…



