During this period the moon reaches its new phase on Thursday December 29th. At this time the moon will be located near the sun and will not be visible at night. This weekend the waning crescent moon will rise during the early morning hours and will not cause any problems due to the thin phase.
Read MoreDuring this period the moon reaches its full phase on Tuesday December 13th. At this time the moon will be located opposite the sun and will lie above the horizon all night long. This weekend the waxing gibbous moon will set between 0200 and 0300 on Saturday morning and 0300 and 0400 on Sunday morning, allowing a couple of hours of meteor viewing under dark skies before the start of dawn.
Read MoreDuring this period the moon reaches its first quarter phase on Tuesday December 6th. At this time the moon will be located 90 degrees east of the sun and will set between 11pm and midnight local standard time (LST). As the week progresses the waxing gibbous moon will begin to interfere with early morning meteor observations as the bright moonlight will obscure the fainter meteors.
Read MoreDuring this period the moon reaches its last quarter phase on Monday November 21st. At this time the moon will be located 90 degrees west of the sun and will rise between 2300 and midnight local standard time. The moonlight will interfere with meteor observing during the prime morning hours but not nearly as much as when it was closer to its full phase. Viewing conditions improve with each passing night as the moon’s phase wanes and it rises later in the morning.
Read MoreDuring this period the moon reaches it’s full phase on Monday November 14th. At this time the moon will be located opposite the sun and will lie above the horizon all night long. This will be the worse time of the month to view meteor activity as the bright glare from the full moon will obscure all but the brighter meteors.
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