- 4 Dec, 00:15 Vilnius time: last quarter.
- 10 Dec, 20:32 Vilnius time: new moon.
- 17 Dec, 13:36 Vilnius time: first quarter.
- 25 Dec, 15:48 Vilnius time: full moon, traditionally the Cold Moon.
- During December 1977 the Moon passes through all eight phases. One full cycle takes about 29.5 days.
- The next full moon after this month is on 24 January 1978 (January 1978).
Moon phase times, December 1977
The four principal phases are moments, not whole days. Times are given in UTC and in Europe/Vilnius time.
| Date | Phase | Europe/Vilnius | UTC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 4 Dec | Last quarter | 00:15 | 21:15 |
| Sat 10 Dec | New moon | 20:32 | 17:32 |
| Sat 17 Dec | First quarter | 13:36 | 10:36 |
| Sun 25 Dec | Full moon · Cold Moon | 15:48 | 12:48 |
The sky: December 1977
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 3 Dec | The Moon near Saturn | About 4.8° apart. Look for Saturn next to the Moon. |
| Sat 3 Dec | Mercury farthest from the Sun | 21° in the evening sky. Too low at this latitude this time, hard to see. |
| Sun 11 Dec | The Moon near Mercury | About 5.9° apart, but Mercury is not visible that night. |
| Tue 13 Dec | Geminids meteor shower peak | Up to 150 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 18% lit and will not interfere. |
| Thu 22 Dec | Ursids meteor shower peak | Up to 10 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 93% lit: only the brightest meteors will show. |
| Fri 23 Dec | Jupiter at opposition | The planet is opposite the Sun: it rises at sunset, is up all night and at its brightest of the year. |
| Sun 25 Dec | The Moon near Jupiter | About 4.7° apart. Look for Jupiter next to the Moon. |
| Fri 30 Dec | The Moon near Saturn | About 4.7° 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 1977
| Date | Time (UTC) | Traditional name | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 5 Jan | 12:10 | Wolf Moon | passed |
| Fri 4 Feb | 03:55 | Snow Moon | passed |
| Sat 5 Mar | 17:12 | Worm Moon | passed |
| Mon 4 Apr | 04:08 | Pink Moon | passed |
| Tue 3 May | 13:03 | Flower Moon | passed |
| Wed 1 Jun | 20:30 | Strawberry Moon | passed |
| Fri 1 Jul | 03:23 | Buck Moon | passed |
| Sat 30 Jul | 10:51 | Blue Moon | passed |
| Sun 28 Aug | 20:09 | Sturgeon Moon | passed |
| Tue 27 Sep | 08:16 | Harvest Moon | passed |
| Thu 27 Oct | 23:35 | Hunter’s Moon | passed |
| Fri 25 Nov | 17:31 | Beaver Moon | passed |
| Sun 25 Dec | 12:48 | Cold Moon | passed |
New moon dates 1977
| Date | Time (UTC) | |
|---|---|---|
| Wed 19 Jan | 14:10 | passed |
| Fri 18 Feb | 03:36 | passed |
| Sat 19 Mar | 18:32 | passed |
| Mon 18 Apr | 10:35 | passed |
| Wed 18 May | 02:51 | passed |
| Thu 16 Jun | 18:22 | passed |
| Sat 16 Jul | 08:36 | passed |
| Mon 15 Aug | 21:30 | passed |
| Tue 13 Sep | 09:22 | passed |
| Wed 12 Oct | 20:30 | passed |
| Fri 11 Nov | 07:09 | passed |
| Sat 10 Dec | 17:32 | 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 1977
No eclipse data for 1977.
The waning moon is traditionally a time for finishing
Questions people ask
When is the full moon in December 1977?
The full moon is on 25 December 1977. Its traditional name is the Cold Moon. The exact time is in the table on this page.
When is the new moon in December 1977?
The new moon is on 10 December 1977. 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.