A man, drinking his tea, spends time with his dog as Full Moon rises over Mount Artos in Gevas ... [+]
The Snow Moon — the name for February's full moon — rose during dusk on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, to light up the night sky.
Those able to see the eastern horizon at dusk were treated to the spectacle of the lunar surface delicately lit in orange as it appeared. That's because objects seen close to the horizon — such as moonrises and sunsets — have their blue light scattered, causing a warm reddish color.
The full moon rises in the sky on night of the Lantern Festival on February 12, 2025 in Beijing, ... [+]
The Snow Moon rose with a bright star close to it. From Europe, Regulus — the “Heart of the Lion” — was visible just below the full moon as it appeared on the horizon. Regulus was just to the right side of the moon for those in North America.
For some cultures, the Snow Moon is very special. Aside from being associated with snowfall in the Northern Hemisphere, this full moon ends the Chinese Lunar New Year (also called Lunar New Year and Spring Festival) celebrations, which began with the new moon on Jan. 29, 2025.
Snow moon rises in Srinagar, India-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir on February 12, 2025. The ... [+]
Ushering in the Year of the Snake, the Chinese Lunar New Year is a 15-day celebration marked by many traditions. The rise of the Snow Moon signals the start of the Lantern Festival, during which people eat sweet glutinous rice balls called tangyuan and children carry lanterns.
The new moon following the Snow Moon will take place on Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, which will determine the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan in the Islamic faith. Islam operates on a lunar calendar, with months beginning and ending with the first sighting of a crescent moon. That means it could start on Friday, Feb. 28 or Saturday, Mar. 1.
A view of the full moon, illuminating the sky in Erbil, Iraq on February 12, 2025. (Photo by Ahsan ... [+]
Ramadan will end with the first sighting of the crescent moon after the following new moon — which happens to be a partial solar eclipse — on Saturday, Mar. 29, 2025.
The next night sky highlights this month after the rise of the Snow Moon is the brightening of the planet Venus, which will reach its most brilliant on Sunday, Feb. 16. Shining brightly in the western sky just after sunset, the so-called “Evening Star” is presently close to Earth.
Full moon rises over the sky in Van, Turkiye on February 12, 2025. (Photo by Necmettin ... [+]
Venus’ proximity to Earth explains why it's much larger and, therefore, brighter than usual. However, although its disk is larger, it's a slim crescent. Since it's an inner planet, only the side of Venus is currently lit by the sun from Earth's point of view.
The next full moon, the Worm Moon, will rise on Friday, Mar. 14, 2025. This will be a very special full moon, being the final full moon of spring in the Northern Hemisphere and the first total lunar eclipse since November 2022. Visible across North America from 10:57 p.m. EST (03:57 UTC), the full moon will pass through Earth’s shadow, reaching totality around 2:26 a.m. EST (07:26 UTC). During totality, the moon will take on eerie shades of orange and red for 65 minutes. It promises to be the celestial highlight of 2025 — don’t miss it!
Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
