I was just too lazy to scout out a location for the December (Long Nights or Cold) full moon. I took a couple of photos from the full moon on December 21, but didn’t like either. This one is from the following night, the night after the full moon. Its taken from my studio window. The sky clouded up a bit before the moon made its way past my window. The Farmers Almanac notes that “during this month the winter cold fastens its grip, and nights are at their longest and darkest. It is also sometimes called the Moon before Yule. The term Long Night Moon is a doubly appropriate name because the midwinter night is indeed long, and because the Moon is above the horizon for a long time. The midwinter full Moon has a high trajectory across the sky because it is opposite a low Sun.” (click on thumbnail image for larger image)The following information is provided for Durham, Durham County, North Carolina. The following information for Durham County, North Carolina(longitude W78.9, latitude N36.0):
Monday 24 December 2007 Eastern Standard Time
Sunset 5:07 p.m. Open camera shutter 5:25 p.m. End civil twilight 5:35 p.m. Moonrise 5:48 p.m. Close camera shutter 12:10 a.m. Moonset 9:03 a.m. on following day
Phase of the Moon on 24 December: waning gibbous with 99% of the Moon’s visible disk illuminated. Full Moon on 23 December 2007 at 8:16 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.