Cold Moon 2024: The full moon on December 15th, also known as the “Cold Moon,” marks an important celestial event toward the end of this year.

Due to the celestial position of Earth’s orbit around the Sun, the Moon will be fully visible at night throughout the weekend, making it the longest full moon event in a lunar cycle.

The full moon in December is called by different names in different parts of the world.

Some of them are Yule or the Oak Moon, Datta or Dattatreya Jayanti Festival Moon, Karthikai Deepam Festival Moon etc. The Maine Farmers’ Almanac called it the Cold Moon because it occurs closer to the winter solstice and brings long and cold winter nights.

“Since the full moon is closest to the winter solstice, this will be the Long Night Moon. The plane of the Moon’s orbit around the Earth is almost the same as the plane of the Earth’s orbit around the Sun. When the sun’s orbit appears at its lowest point during the year, the full moon’s orbit appears almost at its highest relative to the sun,” a NASA explainer said.

When and where can you see Cold Moon?

The moon will be fullest and brightest on December 15th and will remain full for about three nights over the weekend. Unlike certain eclipses, this event can be observed with the naked eye.

The Cold Moon will reach its peak brightness at 4:02 a.m. EST (2:32 p.m. IST) on December 15 and will be visible for several hours into the night. The chances of witnessing this unique celestial event remain unclear for people in India.

Religious Meaning of Cold Moon

This full moon corresponds to Datta Jayanti or Dattatreya Jayanti for Hindus, which commemorates the birth of the Hindu god Dattatreya (Datta). This falls on the month of Margashira or Margazhi in the Hindu calendar.

The full moon also falls when Hindus in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and neighboring Sri Lanka observe the day as Karthikai Deepam. According to NASA, the moon corresponds to the constellation Pleiades (Krittikai or Karttikai). People in these regions light diyas to celebrate the festival for several days.