The full Cold Moon, the third and final supermoon of 2025, is set to grace UK skies tonight (December 4). Visible from the afternoon, the moon will appear larger and brighter as it reaches its closest point to Earth in its orbit, known as perigee.
In Edinburgh, the supermoon will rise at 2:29pm, with London and Belfast seeing it at 2:52pm and Cardiff at 3:03pm. The moon will form a triangle with the Pleiades star cluster and the bright star Aldebaran, while Jupiter and the Orion constellation will also be visible nearby.
The Cold Moon gets its name from being the full moon closest to the Winter Solstice on December 21. Historically, full moons were named to track seasons and guide activities like harvesting and hunting. This moon is also called the Long Night Moon or the Moon Before Yule.
However, cloudy conditions may hinder viewing in parts of Scotland. The Met Office forecasts cloud and patchy rain for Lothian, with clearer intervals later in the night in the Highlands. The next supermoon, the Wolf Moon, will rise on January 3, 2026.
