Catch the Cold Moon, the last of 2025’s supermoons, in December

The year’s final supermoon, known as the Cold Moon, will illuminate Singapore’s night skies on Dec 4, marking the third and last in a series of consecutive super full moons.

The Cold Moon follows

November’s Beaver Moon, which was the second super full moon

of the year. The first super full moon of the year,

the Harvest Moon

, appeared in October.

According to timeanddate.com, the Cold Moon will reach full illumination at 7.14am on Dec 5.

A full illumination marks the exact moment when the moon, earth and sun are aligned, with the moon appearing completely lit by the sun’s rays. Although this happens in the morning, the moon will look full throughout the night of Dec 4, before it sets in Singapore the next morning.

Named by the Mohawk people of North America, the Cold Moon rises during the longest nights of the year, near the Northern Hemisphere’s year-end winter solstice.

It is expected to glow longer over the horizon than most full moons, says The Old Farmer’s Almanac, a North American periodical on astronomy and meteorology.

It will be visible across Singapore – if skies are clear – with open spaces such as Marina Barrage, East Coast Park and the Southern Ridges offering the best views.

Three meteor showers to end the year

Stargazers are in for a series of cosmic treats in the coming weeks – with the Leonids, Geminids and Ursids meteor showers peaking at different times.

According to The Observatory at Science Centre Singapore, the Leonids, active from Nov 3 to Dec 2, are expected to peak on the night of Nov 17 into the early hours of Nov 18, when up to 10 to 15 meteors per hour may be visible under dark skies.

The moon on the night of Nov 17 will be slightly under 9 per cent illuminated, according to timeanddate.com, an astronomy site. This means that the moon’s brightness will not interfere much with the Leonids on the night when it peaks, making them more visible.

The meteors, which appear to radiate from the constellation Leo, can be seen without special equipment, though observers in Singapore are advised to head to open, darker areas between midnight and dawn for the best chance of spotting these bright, colourful streaks.

The Geminids, one of the year’s most spectacular showers, will peak between Dec 13 and 15. It could potentially produce around 120 meteors an hour.

Both showers can be viewed with the naked eye, provided weather conditions and light pollution permit clear visibility.

The Ursids will close out the month, peaking on the night between Dec 22 and 23 with up to 10 meteors visible per hour. The Ursids may be harder to spot from Singapore, said the observatory, as they originate from Ursa Minor, a northern constellation that is not visible here.