MIAMI, Florida – The first Full Moon of 2026 will occur on Saturday, January 3, 2026, beginning with a moonrise over Florida’s east coast at approximately 6:08 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (with several minutes of variation depending on your exact location).
The Full Moon will technically reach peak illumination at 5:03 a.m. EST on January 3, 2026. The first full moon of the year is also a Supermoon.
According to NASA, a Supermoon occurs because the Moon is in an elliptical orbit around the Earth.
When the Moon is closest, it is at its orbital perigee, which is why a Super Moon is also known as a Perigee Moon.
At its closest point, the full moon can appear up to 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter than the faintest Moon of the year, which occurs when it’s farthest from Earth in its orbit.
A full moon at its closest point to Earth definitely will be big and bright. But it won’t look much, if any, different than a “normal” full moon and will not have any readily observable effect on our planet except perhaps slightly higher tides for most areas around the world.
A Full Moon in January has seasonal names such as a “Wolf Moon” from Native American tribes, according to the Farmer’s Almanac.
Other January full moon names include “Old Moon” and “Moon after Yule” because it is the first full moon after Christmas.
For those planning to walk, bike, or run along the beach in Florida, this Full Moon brings along with it higher than average Atlantic Ocean high tides on the east coast and on Florida’s Gulf Coast (exact heights vary by location and date).
Low hanging moons near the horizon appear larger to humans.
So, the Full Wolf Moon will appear biggest to the naked eye on the U.S east coast during and just after moonrise on the evening of Saturday, January 3, around 6:08 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
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