Plan your trip to dark sky areas for better chances of viewing meteor showers. Did you know that New Moons provide the best time to view the stars and celestial objects.
Dec 19: Micro Full Moon / Cold Moon
The 2021 December Full Moon is a Micromoon—it occurs when the Moon is closest to its apogee. One of the traditional names for the Full Moon in December is Cold Moon.
Dec 21: December Solstice
The December solstice will take place at 15:59 UTC. Also known as the winter solstice, it is the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is the longest day of the year and is called the summer solstice.
Dec 22/23: Ursid Meteors
Catch the shooting stars of the last major meteor shower of the year, the Ursids, when it peaks between the night of December 22 and 23, 2021.
Jan 2: Super New Moon
The Moon will come between the Sun and the Earth, and the illuminated side of the Moon will face away from the Earth.
This New Moon takes place close to its perigee, when it’s closest to the Earth, making it a Super Moon.
Jan 3/4: Quadrantids Meteors
The first major meteor shower of 2022, the Quadrantids, peaks on the night of January 3 and early morning hours of January 4.
Jan 4: Earth’s Perihelion
At 06:52 UTC, the Earth will reach its perihelion—the point on its orbit closest to the Sun.
Jan 7: Mercury at Greatest Elongation East
This might be a good time to try and spot Mercury: the planet appears at its farthest distance from the Sun in the evening sky.
Jan 17: Wolf Moon
The first Full Moon of the year is colloquially known as Wolf Moon in many northern cultures. A Full Moon occurs when the Sun and the Moon are on opposite sides of the Earth.
Feb 1: New Moon
Take advantage of the New Moon to check out the night sky, weather permitting, of course.
Feb 16: Snow Moon
February’s Full Moon is also known as Snow Moon in many Northern Hemisphere cultures.
Feb 16: Mercury at Greatest Elongation West
This might be a good time to try and spot Mercury: the planet appears at its farthest distance from the Sun in the morning sky.
March 2: New Moon
Dark nights a few days before and after the Moon reaches its New Moon phase at 17:34 UTC on March 2 are the best nights to do some night sky watching.
March 18: Worm Moon
The Full Moon in March is traditionally called Worm Moon, after earthworms that tend to appear around this time in many locations in the Northern Hemisphere.
March 20: March Equinox
The March equinox is the first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere and the start of fall in the Southern Hemisphere, by astronomical definitions.
Mar 20: Venus at Greatest Elongation West
Venus shines brightly as the “morning star,” appearing at its farthest distance from the Sun.