December 2001

1. Sun
2. Mon
3. Tue
4. Wed
5. Thu
6. Fri
7. Sat
14. 1 99%
15. 2 96%
16. 3 90%
17. 4 83%
18. 5 73%
19. 6 63%
20. 7 Last qtr
21. 8 40%
22. 9 29%
23. 10 20%
24. 11 12%
25. 12 5%
26. 13 2%
27. 14 New
28. 15 1%
29. 16 4%
30. 17 8%
31. 18 14%
32. 19 22%
33. 20 30%
34. 21 39%
35. 22 First qtr
36. 23 58%
37. 24 67%
38. 25 76%
39. 26 84%
40. 27 91%
41. 28 96%
42. 29 99%
43. 30 Full
44. 31 98%

• Moon phase
• Perigee or apogee
• Eclipse
• Planets
• Equinox or solstice

Events in December 2001

1. Mon, Dec 36:03 AM

   Moon and Jupiter close together

   They pass 1.6° apart in the sky.

2. Mon, Dec 39:05 AM

   Saturn at opposition

   Opposite the Sun in the sky: up all night and at its brightest for the year.

3. Tue, Dec 44:16 PM

   Mercury behind the Sun

   On the far side of the Sun and lost in its glare.

4. Thu, Dec 6

   Perigee

   The Moon's closest point to Earth on this orbit: 370,100 km.

5. Fri, Dec 72:52 PM

   Last Quarter

   Half of the disc is lit. The Moon rises around midnight and is up through the morning.

6. Fri, Dec 141:02 AM

   Moon and Venus close together

   They pass 0.8° apart in the sky.

7. Fri, Dec 143:48 PM

   New Moon

   The Moon passes between Earth and the Sun and cannot be seen. These are the darkest nights of the month.

8. Fri, Dec 143:51 PM

   Annular solar eclipse

   The Moon passes in front of the Sun but is too far away to cover it, leaving a ring of light.

9. Sat, Dec 153:24 AM

   Moon and Mercury close together

   They pass 1.6° apart in the sky.

10. Tue, Dec 183:23 AM

    Moon and Neptune close together

    They pass 3.5° apart in the sky.

11. Wed, Dec 198:57 AM

    Moon and Uranus close together

    They pass 3.6° apart in the sky.

12. Thu, Dec 206:57 PM

    Moon and Mars close together

    They pass 4.1° apart in the sky.

13. Fri, Dec 21

    Apogee

    The Moon's farthest point from Earth on this orbit: 404,600 km.

14. Fri, Dec 212:21 PM

    December solstice

    The shortest day in the northern hemisphere and the longest in the southern.

15. Sat, Dec 223:57 PM

    First Quarter

    Half of the disc is lit. The Moon is high at sunset and sets around midnight.

16. Fri, Dec 282:53 AM

    Moon and Saturn close together

    They pass 0.2° apart in the sky.

17. Sun, Dec 305:29 AM

    Penumbral lunar eclipse

    The Moon passes through Earth's faint outer shadow and dims slightly.

18. Sun, Dec 305:41 AM

    Full Moon Cold Moon

    The whole disc is lit. The Moon rises around sunset and stays up all night.

19. Sun, Dec 309:09 AM

    Moon and Jupiter close together

    They pass 1.2° apart in the sky.

Times are local to America/New York. Each Moon is drawn as it looks at midday.