- 5 Dec, 02:52 Vilnius time: last quarter.
- 12 Dec, 03:28 Vilnius time: new moon.
- 18 Dec, 18:39 Vilnius time: first quarter.
- 26 Dec, 17:06 Vilnius time: full moon, traditionally the Cold Moon.
- During December 2004 the Moon passes through all eight phases. One full cycle takes about 29.5 days.
- The next full moon after this month is on 25 January 2005 (January 2005).
Moon phase times, December 2004
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 5 Dec | Last quarter | 02:52 | 00:52 |
| Sun 12 Dec | New moon | 03:28 | 01:28 |
| Sat 18 Dec | First quarter | 18:39 | 16:39 |
| Sun 26 Dec | Full moon · Cold Moon | 17:06 | 15:06 |
The sky: December 2004
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 1 Dec | The Moon near Saturn | About 5.2° apart. Look for Saturn next to the Moon. |
| Mon 6 Dec | Venus and Mars together | Only 1.2° apart: both fit in a binocular field. |
| Tue 7 Dec | The Moon near Jupiter | About 0.3° apart. Look for Jupiter next to the Moon. |
| Thu 9 Dec | The Moon near Mars | About 2.0° apart. Look for Mars next to the Moon. |
| Fri 10 Dec | The Moon near Venus | About 3.3° apart. Look for Venus next to the Moon. |
| Mon 13 Dec | Geminids meteor shower peak | Up to 150 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 5% lit and will not interfere. |
| Tue 21 Dec | Ursids meteor shower peak | Up to 10 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 83% lit: only the brightest meteors will show. |
| Tue 28 Dec | The Moon near Saturn | About 5.0° apart. Look for Saturn next to the Moon. |
| Wed 29 Dec | Mercury farthest from the Sun | 22° in the morning sky. Look low in the east before sunrise. |
| Fri 31 Dec | Mercury and Venus together | Only 1.1° apart: both fit in a binocular field. |
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 2004
| Date | Time (UTC) | Traditional name | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 7 Jan | 15:40 | Wolf Moon | passed |
| Fri 6 Feb | 08:46 | Snow Moon | passed |
| Sun 7 Mar | 23:14 | Worm Moon | passed |
| Mon 5 Apr | 11:02 | Pink Moon | passed |
| Tue 4 May | 20:33 | Flower Moon | passed |
| Thu 3 Jun | 04:19 | Strawberry Moon | passed |
| Fri 2 Jul | 11:08 | Buck Moon | passed |
| Sat 31 Jul | 18:04 | Blue Moon | passed |
| Mon 30 Aug | 02:22 | Sturgeon Moon | passed |
| Tue 28 Sep | 13:09 | Harvest Moon | passed |
| Thu 28 Oct | 03:07 | Hunter’s Moon | passed |
| Fri 26 Nov | 20:07 | Beaver Moon | passed |
| Sun 26 Dec | 15:06 | Cold Moon | passed |
New moon dates 2004
| Date | Time (UTC) | |
|---|---|---|
| Wed 21 Jan | 21:04 | passed |
| Fri 20 Feb | 09:17 | passed |
| Sun 21 Mar | 22:41 | passed |
| Mon 19 Apr | 13:21 | passed |
| Wed 19 May | 04:51 | passed |
| Thu 17 Jun | 20:26 | passed |
| Sat 17 Jul | 11:23 | passed |
| Mon 16 Aug | 01:23 | passed |
| Tue 14 Sep | 14:28 | passed |
| Thu 14 Oct | 02:48 | passed |
| Fri 12 Nov | 14:27 | passed |
| Sun 12 Dec | 01:28 | 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 2004
No eclipse data for 2004.
The waning moon is traditionally a time for finishing
Questions people ask
When is the full moon in December 2004?
The full moon is on 26 December 2004. Its traditional name is the Cold Moon. The exact time is in the table on this page.
When is the new moon in December 2004?
The new moon is on 12 December 2004. 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.