The Christmas star always gets to be a big part of the holiday season. It crowns Christmas trees, highlights Christmas cards and plays a key role in Christmas carols and narrations from the Bible.
On Thursday night and Friday morning — for the only time in a span of 56 years — the Christmas full moon gets its chance to shine.
“Not only will the moon be full, but it also will be directly overhead. (If there’s) a break in cloud cover, it should make for impressive viewing,” said Guy Worthey, associate professor of physics and astronomy at Washington State University, in a news release.
The last full moon on Christmas was in 1977, and the next won’t appear until 2034, Worthey said.
It will start Thursday, on Christmas Eve, and peak on Christmas morning at 3:11 a.m. Pacific time.
Also called a yuletide moon, it occurs when days are shortest and nights are longest. Tuesday was the first full day of winter, with eight hours and 42 minutes of daylight at Clark County’s latitude.
This week’s full moon will be the last of the year. It is also called the full cold moon because it occurs during the beginning of winter, according to NASA’s website.
In addition to the glorious view (weather permitting), the moon also is providing some valuable scientific data.
“As you gaze up at the Christmas moon, take note that NASA has a spacecraft currently orbiting Earth’s moon,” said the agency’s website. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter mission “has been investigating the lunar surface since 2009.”
