- 5 Dec, 02:06 Vilnius time: full moon, traditionally the Cold Moon.
- 13 Dec, 03:48 Vilnius time: last quarter.
- 19 Dec, 21:18 Vilnius time: new moon.
- 26 Dec, 17:13 Vilnius time: first quarter.
- During December 1968 the Moon passes through all eight phases. One full cycle takes about 29.5 days.
- The next full moon after this month is on 3 January 1969 (January 1969).
Moon phase times, December 1968
The four principal phases are moments, not whole days. Times are given in UTC and in Europe/Vilnius time.
| Date | Phase | Europe/Vilnius | UTC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 5 Dec | Full moon · Cold Moon | 02:06 | 23:06 |
| Fri 13 Dec | Last quarter | 03:48 | 00:48 |
| Thu 19 Dec | New moon | 21:18 | 18:18 |
| Thu 26 Dec | First quarter | 17:13 | 14:13 |
The sky: December 1968
Planets and sky events this month, as seen in London. The Moon's phases are in the calendar above.
Planets visible (mid-month)
Events
| Sat 14 Dec | The Moon near Jupiter | About 1.0° apart. Look for Jupiter next to the Moon. |
| Fri 13 Dec | Geminids meteor shower peak | Up to 150 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 39% lit and will hide some fainter meteors. |
| Sun 15 Dec | The Moon near Mars | About 2.7° apart. Look for Mars next to the Moon. |
| Sun 22 Dec | Ursids meteor shower peak | Up to 10 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 11% lit and will not interfere. |
| Sun 22 Dec | The Moon near Venus | About 1.8° apart. Look for Venus next to the Moon. |
| Fri 27 Dec | The Moon near Saturn | About 3.7° apart. Look for Saturn next to the Moon. |
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 1968
| Date | Time (UTC) | Traditional name | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 15 Jan | 16:10 | Wolf Moon | passed |
| Wed 14 Feb | 06:42 | Snow Moon | passed |
| Thu 14 Mar | 18:51 | Worm Moon | passed |
| Sat 13 Apr | 04:51 | Pink Moon | passed |
| Sun 12 May | 13:04 | Flower Moon | passed |
| Mon 10 Jun | 20:12 | Strawberry Moon | passed |
| Wed 10 Jul | 03:17 | Buck Moon | passed |
| Thu 8 Aug | 11:31 | Sturgeon Moon | passed |
| Sat 7 Sep | 22:06 | Harvest Moon | passed |
| Sun 6 Oct | 11:45 | Hunter’s Moon | passed |
| Tue 5 Nov | 04:24 | Beaver Moon | passed |
| Thu 5 Dec | 23:06 | Cold Moon | passed |
New moon dates 1968
| Date | Time (UTC) | |
|---|---|---|
| Mon 29 Jan | 16:28 | passed |
| Wed 28 Feb | 06:55 | passed |
| Fri 29 Mar | 22:47 | passed |
| Sat 27 Apr | 15:20 | passed |
| Mon 27 May | 07:29 | passed |
| Wed 26 Jun | 22:23 | passed |
| Thu 25 Jul | 11:48 | passed |
| Sat 24 Aug | 23:55 | passed |
| Sun 22 Sep | 11:07 | passed |
| Tue 22 Oct | 21:43 | passed |
| Wed 20 Nov | 08:01 | passed |
| Thu 19 Dec | 18:18 | passed |
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 1968
No eclipse data for 1968.
The waning moon is traditionally a time for finishing
Questions people ask
When is the full moon in December 1968?
The full moon is on 5 December 1968. Its traditional name is the Cold Moon. The exact time is in the table on this page.
When is the new moon in December 1968?
The new moon is on 19 December 1968. 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.