December 2027 at a glance: Dec 13: Full Cold Moon; Dec 14: Geminids peak (ZHR 150, Moon 98% lit). Planets from New York: evening: Venus, Mars, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter.
Dec13
Full Cold Moon
Dec14
Geminids peak (ZHR 150, Moon 98% lit)
Moon phases
Moon at 0h UTC each day
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
18%
214%
322%
430%
539%
6First Quarter
758%
867%
976%
1084%
1191%
1296%
13Full
14100%
1598%
1693%
1785%
1876%
1966%
20Last Quarter
2143%
2233%
2323%
2415%
258%
263%
27New
280%
291%
304%
319%
Phase
UTC
New York
London
Sydney
First Quarter
Dec 6, 05:22 UTC
Mon Dec 6, 12:22 am
Mon Dec 6, 5:22 am
Mon Dec 6, 4:22 pm
Full Moon
Cold Moon; 368,142 km away
Dec 13, 16:08 UTC
Mon Dec 13, 11:08 am
Mon Dec 13, 4:08 pm
Tue Dec 14, 3:08 am
Last Quarter
Dec 20, 09:10 UTC
Mon Dec 20, 4:10 am
Mon Dec 20, 9:10 am
Mon Dec 20, 8:10 pm
New Moon
Dec 27, 20:12 UTC
Mon Dec 27, 3:12 pm
Mon Dec 27, 8:12 pm
Tue Dec 28, 7:12 am
Planets
at least 5° up, Sun 6° down
Pick a city. The chart runs from 4 pm to 8 am local time for each night of the month; coloured bars show when each planet is up in a dark sky.
From New York: evening: Venus, Mars, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter.
MercuryVenusMarsJupiterSaturnMoondark sky
Planet
When
Where (local time)
Mag.
Constellation
Mercury
Not visible (too close to the Sun)
–
-1.2
Ophiuchus
Venus
Evening, all month
southwest, 14° up at dusk; below 5° by 6:10 pm (on the 15th)
-3.9
Sagittarius
Mars
Evening, all month
southwest, 7° up at dusk; below 5° by 5:20 pm (on the 15th)
1.2
Sagittarius
Jupiter
Before dawn, all month
above 5° from 12:30 am; south-southwest, 51° up at dawn (on the 15th)
-2.0
Virgo
Saturn
Most of the night, all month
southeast, 42° up at dusk; below 5° by 1:30 am (on the 15th)
0.4
Pisces
From London: evening: Venus, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter.
MercuryVenusMarsJupiterSaturnMoondark sky
Planet
When
Where (local time)
Mag.
Constellation
Mercury
Not visible (too close to the Sun)
–
-1.2
Ophiuchus
Venus
Evening, all month
southwest, 9° up at dusk; below 5° by 5:20 pm (on the 15th)
-3.9
Sagittarius
Mars
Not visible (not up in a dark sky)
–
1.2
Sagittarius
Jupiter
Before dawn, all month
above 5° from 12:40 am; south-southwest, 39° up at dawn (on the 15th)
-2.0
Virgo
Saturn
Most of the night, all month
east-southeast, 30° up at dusk; below 5° by 1:40 am (on the 15th)
0.4
Pisces
From Toronto: evening: Venus, Mars, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter.
MercuryVenusMarsJupiterSaturnMoondark sky
Planet
When
Where (local time)
Mag.
Constellation
Mercury
Not visible (too close to the Sun)
–
-1.2
Ophiuchus
Venus
Evening, all month
southwest, 13° up at dusk; below 5° by 6:20 pm (on the 15th)
-3.9
Sagittarius
Mars
Evening, all month
southwest, 7° up at dusk; below 5° by 5:30 pm (on the 15th)
1.2
Sagittarius
Jupiter
Before dawn, all month
above 5° from 12:50 am; south-southwest, 48° up at dawn (on the 15th)
-2.0
Virgo
Saturn
Most of the night, all month
southeast, 38° up at dusk; below 5° by 1:50 am (on the 15th)
0.4
Pisces
From Sydney: evening: Venus, Mars, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter.
MercuryVenusMarsJupiterSaturnMoondark sky
Planet
When
Where (local time)
Mag.
Constellation
Mercury
Not visible (too close to the Sun)
–
-1.2
Ophiuchus
Venus
Evening, all month
west-southwest, 18° up at dusk; below 5° by 9:40 pm (on the 15th)
-3.9
Sagittarius
Mars
Evening, all month
west-southwest, 10° up at dusk; below 5° by 9:00 pm (on the 15th)
1.2
Sagittarius
Jupiter
Before dawn, all month
above 5° from 1:40 am; northeast, 43° up at dawn (on the 15th)
-2.0
Virgo
Saturn
Most of the night, all month
north, 50° up at dusk; below 5° by 2:00 am (on the 15th)
0.4
Pisces
Dates to note
Dec11
Mercury at superior conjunction
Dec 11, 14:00 UTC. Mercury passes behind the Sun and is lost in the glare for a while.
Dec12
The Moon near the Pleiades (0.5°)
Dec 12, around 04h UTC. Geocentric; from your location the gap differs by up to about 1°.
Dec13
Full Moon
Dec 13, 16:08 UTC. Cold Moon.
Dec14
Geminids peak
Dec 14, around 19h UTC; up to 150 meteors an hour under ideal skies (ZHR). Moon 98% lit at the peak. Best from the north. Best time for your city →
Dec18
The Moon near Regulus (2.9°)
Dec 18, around 09h UTC. Geocentric; from your location the gap differs by up to about 1°.
Dec22
December solstice
Dec 22, 02:42 UTC. The shortest day in the north, the longest in the south.
Dec23
Ursids peak
Dec 23, 04:00 UTC; up to 10 meteors an hour under ideal skies (ZHR). Moon 22% lit at the peak. Northern hemisphere. Best time for your city →
Dec27
New Moon
Dec 27, 20:12 UTC. The dark-sky window: the best week for faint objects and meteors.
Dec29
The Moon near Mars (0.5°)
Dec 29, around 11h UTC. Closest as seen from Earth's centre; from your location the gap differs by up to about 1°. If that moment falls in your daytime, look the evening before or after.
Dec30
The Moon near Venus (2.9°)
Dec 30, around 23h UTC. Closest as seen from Earth's centre; from your location the gap differs by up to about 1°. If that moment falls in your daytime, look the evening before or after.
Times in UTC. Separations are geocentric (from Earth's centre). Pairings closer than 3° (planets) or 4° (the Moon and a planet) are listed when the planets are at least 15° from the Sun.
Dates, peaks and ZHR: International Meteor Organization calendar. “Around” marks a peak computed from the solar longitude the IMO lists. Moon: illuminated fraction at the peak.
Space station passes
The ISS and Tiangong orbits are only predictable about six weeks ahead, so pass windows for December 2027 appear here once that month is close. Today's passes: ISS tonight, Tiangong tonight.
Your hemisphere
United States
New York
4:29 pmsunset (15th)
7:13 amsunrise (16th)
11 h 30 minfull darkness
Over the month the night length barely changes (+10 min of full darkness from the 1st to the 31st). Planets: evening: Venus, Mars, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter.
Over the month the night length barely changes (+10 min of full darkness from the 1st to the 31st). Planets: evening: Venus, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter.
Over the month the night length barely changes (+10 min of full darkness from the 1st to the 31st). Planets: evening: Venus, Mars, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter.
Over the month the night length barely changes (−10 min of full darkness from the 1st to the 31st). Planets: evening: Venus, Mars, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter. From the southern hemisphere the Moon's lit side is mirrored compared with the calendar above, and the planets arc across the northern sky.
Dec 13, 16:08 UTC (Dec 13, 11:08 am in New York, Dec 13, 4:08 pm in London). Traditional name: Cold Moon.
When is the new Moon in December 2027?
Dec 27, 20:12 UTC. The nights around it are the darkest of the month.
What planets are visible in December 2027?
From New York: evening: Venus, Mars, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter. From Sydney: evening: Venus, Mars, Saturn; before dawn: Jupiter. The tables above give times and directions for each city.
Are there meteor showers in December 2027?
Geminids: peak Dec 14, around 19h UTC, ZHR 150; Ursids: peak Dec 23, 04:00 UTC, ZHR 10.
Computed by us from JPL's DE440 planetary ephemeris with Skyfield: phases, positions, magnitudes (Mallama & Hilton), separations, equinoxes and solstices. Full Moon names are the traditional North American ones. Meteor showers: International Meteor Organization. Eclipses: Fred Espenak, NASA GSFC. Planet times ignore hills and buildings; a planet 5° up needs a clear, low horizon.