- 1 Dec, 08:21 Vilnius time: new moon.
- 8 Dec, 17:26 Vilnius time: first quarter.
- 15 Dec, 11:01 Vilnius time: full moon, traditionally the Cold Moon.
- 23 Dec, 00:18 Vilnius time: last quarter.
- 31 Dec, 00:26 Vilnius time: new moon.
- During December 2024 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 2025 (January 2025).
Moon phase times, December 2024
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 1 Dec | New moon | 08:21 | 06:21 |
| Sun 8 Dec | First quarter | 17:26 | 15:26 |
| Sun 15 Dec | Full moon · Cold Moon | 11:01 | 09:01 |
| Mon 23 Dec | Last quarter | 00:18 | 22:18 |
| Tue 31 Dec | New moon | 00:26 | 22:26 |
The sky: December 2024
Planets and sky events this month, as seen in London. The Moon's phases are in the calendar above.
Planets visible (mid-month)
Events
| Thu 5 Dec | The Moon near Venus | About 2.2° apart. Look for Venus next to the Moon. |
| Sat 7 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 8 Dec | The Moon near Saturn | About 0.3° apart. Look for Saturn next to the Moon. |
| Fri 13 Dec | Geminids meteor shower peak | Up to 150 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 96% lit: only the brightest meteors will show. |
| Sat 14 Dec | The Moon near Jupiter | About 5.4° apart. Look for Jupiter next to the Moon. |
| Wed 18 Dec | The Moon near Mars | About 0.9° apart. Look for Mars next to the Moon. |
| Sat 21 Dec | Ursids meteor shower peak | Up to 10 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 58% lit and will hide some fainter meteors. |
| Wed 25 Dec | Mercury farthest from the Sun | 22° in the morning sky. Look low in the east before sunrise. |
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 2024
| Date | Time (UTC) | Traditional name | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 25 Jan | 17:54 | Wolf Moon | passed |
| Sat 24 Feb | 12:30 | Snow Moon | passed |
| Mon 25 Mar | 07:00 | Worm Moon | passed |
| Wed 24 Apr | 23:49 | Pink Moon | passed |
| Thu 23 May | 13:53 | Flower Moon | passed |
| Sat 22 Jun | 01:07 | Strawberry Moon | passed |
| Sun 21 Jul | 10:17 | Buck Moon | passed |
| Mon 19 Aug | 18:25 | Sturgeon Moon | passed |
| Wed 18 Sep | 02:34 | Harvest Moon | passed |
| Thu 17 Oct | 11:26 | Hunter’s Moon | passed |
| Fri 15 Nov | 21:28 | Beaver Moon | passed |
| Sun 15 Dec | 09:01 | Cold Moon | passed |
New moon dates 2024
| Date | Time (UTC) | |
|---|---|---|
| Thu 11 Jan | 11:57 | passed |
| Sat 10 Feb | 22:59 | passed |
| Sun 10 Mar | 09:00 | passed |
| Mon 8 Apr | 18:20 | passed |
| Wed 8 May | 03:21 | passed |
| Thu 6 Jun | 12:37 | passed |
| Sat 6 Jul | 22:57 | passed |
| Sun 4 Aug | 11:13 | passed |
| Tue 3 Sep | 01:55 | passed |
| Wed 2 Oct | 18:49 | passed |
| Fri 1 Nov | 12:47 | passed |
| Sun 1 Dec | 06:21 | passed |
| Tue 31 Dec | 22:26 | 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 2024
No eclipse data for 2024.
The waning moon is traditionally a time for finishing
Questions people ask
When is the full moon in December 2024?
The full moon is on 15 December 2024. Its traditional name is the Cold Moon. The exact time is in the table on this page.
When is the new moon in December 2024?
The new moon is on 1 December 2024, 31 December 2024. 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.