Christmas 2025: What is the Moon phase on December 25

This holiday season, ease into the warmth of Christmas with the Moon in its beautiful waxing crescent phase. At 4.75 days old on Christmas Day, the Moon will be approximately 27% illuminated, per NASA, and will offer a great chance to observe its features.

The Waxing Crescent phase is best observed in the west after the Sun falls below the horizon after sunset. Unlike a Full Moon that washes out the stars around it with its brightness, a waxing crescent provides enough light to illuminate, and not wash out, the background. The Moon will be mostly dark, except for one of its edge, and will be close to the Sun. It will become brighter as it gets closer to the next phase, the First Quarter.

The 27% illumination of the waxing crescent by the Sun on December 25 can change and vary up to 10% a day. There are eight lunar phases in the lunar cycle: the Full Moon, New Moon, First Quarter, and Last Quarter are the major ones. The minor ones include the Waxing Crescent, Waxing Gibbous, Waning Gibbous, and Waning Crescent. It takes the Moon about 29.5 days to complete a full cycle.

There is also a possibility that the earthshine, the light reflected onto the moon from Earth, might illuminate certain parts of the surface that might be invisible. According to NASA's Daily Moon Observation, the Mare Crisium and the Mare Fecunditatis can be seen without any visual aids. The Endymion Crater can be spotted tonight with binoculars, and the Apollo 11 and 17 landing spots will be visible with a telescope. 

No matter where you are—be it the Northern or the Southern Hemisphere—the phase of the Moon and its illumination percentage will be the same. That being said, the time for the Waxing Crescent Moon varies based on the time zone you are in. Moreover, the orientation of the Waxing Crescent Moon is also dependent on the time, date, location, and position of the satellite in the sky. Its height in the sky also affects which part of it—the top, the bottom, or the side—will be lit, according to timeanddate.

The third brightest object in the night sky, Venus, can usually be seen near a Crescent Moon, better visible as the evening star when it is close to a Waxing Moon and as the morning star when it is close to the Waning Moon.

The Moon will reach its First Quarter Phase on December 27, according to Moongiant. At about 43% illumination, the Moon will be high overhead at sunset and will be visible till midnight before it sets in the west. As for the next Full Moon, it is scheduled to grace the skies on January 3. On the day, the Moon will be 14.47 days old and will be 100% illuminated. 

More on Starlust

Airless, shape-shifting wheels could help explore future human habitats on the Moon

Earth's atmosphere hidden on the Moon may prove to be life-sustaining for future astronauts