- 7 Dec, 05:11 Vilnius time: first quarter.
- 15 Dec, 07:48 Vilnius time: full moon, traditionally the Cold Moon.
- 23 Dec, 06:27 Vilnius time: last quarter.
- 29 Dec, 22:08 Vilnius time: new moon.
- During December 1959 the Moon passes through all eight phases. One full cycle takes about 29.5 days.
- The next full moon after this month is on 14 January 1960 (January 1960).
Moon phase times, December 1959
The four principal phases are moments, not whole days. Times are given in UTC and in Europe/Vilnius time.
| Date | Phase | Europe/Vilnius | UTC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 7 Dec | First quarter | 05:11 | 02:11 |
| Tue 15 Dec | Full moon · Cold Moon | 07:48 | 04:48 |
| Wed 23 Dec | Last quarter | 06:27 | 03:27 |
| Tue 29 Dec | New moon | 22:08 | 19:08 |
The sky: December 1959
Planets and sky events this month, as seen in London. The Moon's phases are in the calendar above.
Planets visible (mid-month)
Events
| Wed 2 Dec | The Moon near Saturn | About 4.4° apart. Look for Saturn next to the Moon. |
| Sat 12 Dec | Mercury farthest from the Sun | 21° in the morning sky. Look low in the east before sunrise. |
| Mon 14 Dec | Geminids meteor shower peak | Up to 150 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 100% lit: only the brightest meteors will show. |
| Tue 22 Dec | Ursids meteor shower peak | Up to 10 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 49% lit and will hide some fainter meteors. |
| Sat 26 Dec | Mercury and Mars together | 0.9° apart, but not in a dark sky. |
| Sat 26 Dec | The Moon near Venus | About 1.6° apart. Look for Venus next to the Moon. |
| Sun 27 Dec | Mercury and Jupiter together | 0.0° apart, but not in a dark sky. |
| Mon 28 Dec | The Moon near Mars | About 5.3° apart, but Mars is not visible that night. |
| Mon 28 Dec | The Moon near Jupiter | About 4.4° apart, but Jupiter is not visible that night. |
| Mon 28 Dec | The Moon near Mercury | About 4.7° apart, but Mercury is not visible that night. |
| Tue 29 Dec | Mars and Jupiter together | 0.8° apart, but not in a dark sky. |
How to read the moon calendar
Each day shows its date, the share of the Moon’s disc that is lit at noon, and the Moon’s shape that day. When a full moon, new moon or quarter falls on a day, it is named at the bottom of the cell.
Illumination is the part of the disc lit by the Sun. It grows from new moon to full moon (waxing) and shrinks from full moon to new moon (waning). Each day opens its own page with every signal for that date.
Full moon dates 1959
| Date | Time (UTC) | Traditional name | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 24 Jan | 19:31 | Wolf Moon | passed |
| Mon 23 Feb | 08:53 | Snow Moon | passed |
| Tue 24 Mar | 20:01 | Worm Moon | passed |
| Thu 23 Apr | 05:12 | Pink Moon | passed |
| Fri 22 May | 12:55 | Flower Moon | passed |
| Sat 20 Jun | 19:59 | Strawberry Moon | passed |
| Mon 20 Jul | 03:32 | Buck Moon | passed |
| Tue 18 Aug | 12:49 | Sturgeon Moon | passed |
| Thu 17 Sep | 00:51 | Harvest Moon | passed |
| Fri 16 Oct | 15:57 | Hunter’s Moon | passed |
| Sun 15 Nov | 09:41 | Beaver Moon | passed |
| Tue 15 Dec | 04:48 | Cold Moon | passed |
New moon dates 1959
The eight moon phases explained
Four principal phases are exact instants; the four in between are the days that connect them.
Solar and lunar eclipses in 1959
No eclipse data for 1959.
The waning moon is traditionally a time for finishing
Questions people ask
When is the full moon in December 1959?
The full moon is on 15 December 1959. Its traditional name is the Cold Moon. The exact time is in the table on this page.
When is the new moon in December 1959?
The new moon is on 29 December 1959. The Moon can’t be seen that night: it sits between Earth and the Sun with its lit side turned away.
What do the percentages mean?
They show how much of the Moon’s disc is lit at noon. 0% is new moon, 100% is full moon and 50% is a quarter.
Why does another calendar give a different date?
A phase is a moment. When it falls near midnight, the date can differ by one day between time zones. This calendar uses Europe/Vilnius time for the days.
How often is there a full moon?
About every 29.5 days. Some months have two; the second is called a Blue Moon.
- Jean Meeus, Astronomical Algorithms, 2nd ed., Willmann-Bell, 1998, chapters 48 and 49.
- NASA Eclipse Web Site (eclipse dates and visibility).
Numbers update through the day from public sources. The text for each day is written from that day’s data and checked by the editor. Every past day keeps its own page in the archive.