Full moon in January 2021: When to see the Wolf Moon
The first full moon of the year will light up the night sky on Thursday. The moon will be 100% full at 2:16 p.m. ET.
Barring clouds or bad weather, it will be visible around the world. The Virtual Telescope Project will stream the full moon live as it rises over the skyline of Rome.
Each moon has its own name associated with the full moon. In January, it’s often called the “wolf moon,” supposedly inspired by hungry wolves that howled outside of villages long ago, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac.
But that may not actually be the case, according to EarthSky.org and a 2013 article it cites published in Indian Country Today.
Some tribes have described it as the “cold moon” or the “hard moon,” but not the wolf moon, according to a list of full moon names attributed to 29 tribes at the Western Washington University Planetarium website.
The closest is the Sioux name for the January full moon, which is “wolves run together.” This is similar to the Cheyenne name for the December full moon, “when the wolves run together.”
The list was compiled by Phil Konstantin, a former NASA employee and member of the Cherokee Nation.
Although others have attributed the wolf moon moniker to the Algonquin tribe, they refer to the January full moon as “squochee kesos” or “sun has not strength to thaw.”
Some other names for the January full moon include the bear hunting moon for the Haida tribe in Alaska, “moon of life at its height” for the Hopi tribe in Arizona and even “atalka,” which means “stay inside” for the Kalapuya tribe in the Pacific Northwest.
Typical of a normal year, 2021 will also have 12 full moons. (Last year had 13 full moons, two of which were in October).
Here are all of the full moons occurring this year and their names, according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac:
- February 27 — Snow moon
- March 28 — Worm moon
- April 26 — Pink moon
- May 26 — Flower moon
- June 24 — Strawberry moon
- July 23 — Buck moon
- August 22 — Sturgeon moon
- September 20 — Harvest moon
- October 20 — Hunter’s moon
- November 19 — Beaver moon
- December 18 — Cold moon
Be sure to check for the other names of these moons as well, attributed to the different Native American tribes.
Here is what else you can look forward to in 2021.
Meteor showers
There is a bit of a wait until the next meteor shower, the popular Lyrids in April. The Lyrids will peak on April 22 and will be best seen in the Northern Hemisphere — but the moon will be 68% full, according to the American Meteor Society.
The Eta Aquariids follow soon after, peaking on May 5 when the moon is 38% full. This shower is best seen in the southern tropics, but will still produce a medium shower for those north of the equator.
The Delta Aquariids are also best seen from the southern tropics and will peak between July 28 and 29 when the moon is 74% full.
Interestingly, another meteor shower peaks on the same night — the Alpha Capricornids. Although this is a much weaker shower, it has been known to produce some bright fireballs during the peak. And it will be visible for those on either side of the equator.
The Perseid meteor shower, the most popular of the year, will peak between August 11 and 12 in the Northern Hemisphere when the moon is only 13% full.
Here is the meteor shower schedule for the rest of the year, according to EarthSky’s meteor shower outlook.
- October 8: Draconids
- October 21: Orionids
- November 4 to 5: South Taurids
- November 11 to 12: North Taurids
- November 17: Leonids
- December 13 to 14: Geminids
- December 22: Ursids
Solar and lunar eclipses
This year, there will be two eclipses of the sun and two eclipses of the moon — and three of these will be visible for some in North America, according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac.
A total eclipse of the moon will occur on May 26, best visible to those in western North America and Hawaii from 4:46 a.m. ET to 9:51 a.m. ET.
An annular eclipse of the sun will happen on June 10, visible in northern and northeastern North America from 4:12 a.m. ET to 9:11 a.m. ET. The sun won’t be fully blocked by the moon, so be sure to wear eclipse glasses to safely view this event.
November 19 will see a partial eclipse of the moon, and skywatchers in North America and Hawaii will see it between 1 a.m. ET and 7:06 a.m. ET.
And the year ends with a total eclipse of the sun on December 4. It won’t be seen in North America, but those in the Falkland Islands, the southern tip of Africa, Antarctica and southeastern Australia will be able to spot it.
Visible planets
Skywatchers will have multiple opportunities to spot the planets in our sky during certain mornings and evenings throughout 2021, according to the Farmer’s Almanac planetary guide.
It’s possible to see most of these with the naked eye, with the exception of distant Neptune, but binoculars or a telescope will provide the best view.
Mercury will look like a bright star in the morning sky from February 28 to March 20, June 27 to July 16, and October 18 to November 1. It will shine in the night sky from January 15 to January 31, May 3 to May 24, August 31 to September 21 and November 29 to December 31.
Venus, our closest neighbor in the solar system, will appear in the eastern sky on the mornings of January 1 to 23 and in the western sky at dusk on the evenings of May 24 to December 31. It’s the second brightest object in our sky after the moon.
Mars makes its reddish appearance in the morning sky between November 24 and December 31 and will be visible in the evening sky between January 1 and August 22.
Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, is the third brightest object in our sky. It will be on display in the morning sky between February 17 and August 19. Look for it in the evenings of January 1 to 9 and August 20 to December 31 — but it will be at its brightest from August 8 to September 2.
Saturn’s rings are only visible through a telescope, but the planet itself can still be seen with the naked eye on the mornings of February 10 to August 1 and the evenings of January 1 to 6 and August 2 to December 31. It will be at its brightest between August 1 to 4.
Binoculars or a telescope will help you spot the greenish glow of Uranus on the mornings of May 16 to November 3 and the evenings of January 1 to April 12 and November 4 to December 31 — but at its brightest between August 28 to December 31.
And our most distant neighbor in the solar system, Neptune will be visible through a telescope on the mornings of March 27 to September 13 and the evenings of January 1 to February 23 and September 14 to December 31. It will be at its brightest between July 19 and November 8.
