Tear your eyes away from fireworks this New 12 months’s Eve (Dec. 31) to witness an impressive pure gentle present, full with twinkling constellations and star clusters, the regular gentle of planets and the awe-inspiring sight of the waxing gibbous moon shining within the constellation Taurus.
The moon will likely be seen midway up the japanese horizon within the hours following sundown, with the fragile gentle of the Pleiades open star cluster vying for consideration 5 levels — roughly the width of your three center fingers held at arm’s size — to the higher proper of the 95%-lit lunar disk.
Look immediately beneath the moon to search out the stars of the constellation Orion twinkling close to the eastern horizon. The brightest point of light to Orion’s left is no star at all, but rather the “king of the planets,” Jupiter. On the final night of 2025, Jupiter shines in the constellation Gemini, close to its two brightest stars — Castor and Pollux.
Saturn‘s steady light can also be seen shining halfway up the southern horizon around this time. A telescope with an aperture of around 6 inches will help reveal its famous rings as a thin line bisecting the planet’s cloud tops. The rings are currently oriented edge-on to Earth, but will gradually open up throughout 2026 to reveal their majestic, sweeping structure, including a 2,980-mile (4,800-kilometer) gap known as the Cassini Division.
By midnight, Saturn will have slipped below the horizon, while the moon and Jupiter will stand high overhead. Look roughly 40 degrees above the northern horizon — approximately the width of four clenched fists stacked on top of each other — to find the bright star Polaris, around which the entire sky appears to rotate. To its right you’ll spot the familiar sight of the Big Dipper, tilted so that it appears to be standing on the end of its handle.
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Those self same stars will glide silently by the night time because the final moments of 2025 fade and the primary of a brand new yr begins, heralding the beginning of one other yr of unimaginable stargazing alternatives.
Should you’re new to stargazing, you should definitely learn our article crammed with professional recommendation on how you can start your novice astronomy journey. We even have recommendations on how you can observe the moon, together with very good roundups of one of the best telescope and binocular offers accessible in the event you’re seeking to improve your tools.
Clear skies and a Glad New 12 months from everybody right here at Space.com!
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