(Web Desk) - The first full Moon of the year is set to illuminate the skies on 3 January (Saturday) bringing with it some welcome dazzle to the post-Christmas dip.
Also known as the Wolf Moon, it will be the fourth supermoon in a row following October's Harvest Moon, November's Beaver Moon and the Cold Moon in December.
Viewing is dependent on the weather, but hopefully with largely clear skies it will be a celestial treat to look forward to as the fairy lights are being packed away.
If you miss it, the next chance to see the Moon so large and bright in the sky won't be until November, although there is the extra treat of two full Moons in May making 2026 a rare year with 13 instead of 12 full Moons.
Why is it called a supermoon?
The Moon's orbit around the Earth is elliptical - that is not quite perfectly circular - which means its distance from us varies.
When at its closest point the Moon is described as being in "perigee" and if that moment coincides with a full Moon we call it a supermoon.
At the perigee the Moon is about 220,000 miles away from Earth, compared to at its furthest point - or apogee - around 250,000 miles away.
This means that the Moon appears to be larger and brighter in the night sky.
We generally have three or four supermoons every year so they are not rare - but it is unusual to have four in a row.
Why the 'Wolf Moon'?
According to the Old Farmer's Almanac, January's full moon gets its name because wolves were more likely to be heard howling at this time of year.
Full Moons have names that hark back to ancient traditions before modern calendars were used.
They were helpful ways to mark the changing seasons and the names tend to relate to significant timely events, for example the Hunter, the Harvest and the Flower Moons.
Saturday, Jan. 3 will mark the first full moon of 2026. Known as the Wolf Moon, it will be at its fullest at 5:02 a.m. EST and best seen rising in the east at dusk later that day. It will also be a "supermoon," meaning it will appear brighter and larger than usual.
Other Native American names for this full moon include the Cold Moon, the Frost Exploding Moon, the Freeze-Up Moon, the Severe Moon, the Hard Moon, the Center Moon, and the Canada Goose Moon. In Europe, it's often called the Moon After Yule, after the ancient festival that stretches from the winter solstice on Dec. 21 through Jan. 1.
The best time to see the Wolf Moon will be at moonrise on Jan. 3, when it will appear at dusk between a star and a very bright planet. On its left will be Pollux, a bright star in the constellation Gemini, and Jupiter will be on its right.
The "king of planets" will be just a week away from its bright opposition — the most luminous it will get from our perspective in 2026. Because it's the full moon closest to the winter solstice on Dec. 21, the Wolf Moon will also make the highest arc through the night sky of any full moon, as seen from the Northern Hemisphere.
That happens because a full moon is always opposite the sun, so the winter sun mimics the summer sun.
The Wolf Moon is also the fourth consecutive supermoon, though it will not be particularly large. It is also the last one until November. It's called a supermoon because it turns full close to perigee, the closest the moon gets to Earth.
After the Wolf Moon, the next full moon will be the Snow Moon, on Feb. 1.