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Wolf Supermoon Peaks Early Saturday With Best Views at Evening Moonrise

A near‑perigee distance of about 362,000 km alongside Earth’s perihelion gives this full moon a modest brightness boost.

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Jupiter reaches opposition this month, looking its best, while the motions of its moons are fascinating to watch. This 2020 Hubble image shows Jupiter and its icy moon Europa. Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M. H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley) and the OPAL team
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Overview

  • The Moon reaches full phase on January 3 at about 5:02–5:03 a.m. EST (10:03 GMT), with the most dramatic viewing at moonrise on January 2 and 3.
  • As a supermoon near perigee, it can appear up to roughly 14% larger and 30% brighter than an apogee full moon, according to Royal Museums Greenwich.
  • This is the fourth supermoon in a row and the last until late 2026, making it the final such event for several months.
  • Look low in the east at dusk to see the Moon near Pollux with bright Jupiter nearby; in India, moonrise is expected around 5:45–6:00 p.m. IST.
  • The full Moon’s glare will reduce visibility of the Quadrantid meteor shower, though some brighter fireballs may still be spotted.