DECEMBER 2022 OBSERVING Lunar Almanac Northern Hemisphere Sky Chart December 1 18 Yellow dots indicate which part of the Moon's limb is tipped the most toward Earth by libration. 15 MOON PHASES MON SUN 8 NASA / LRO TUE WED 1 4 11 18 25 5 12 19 26 6 13 20 27 7 14 21 28 8 15 22 29 THU 2 9 16 23 30 FRI 3 10 17 24 31 SAT γ β FULL MOON December 8 04:08 UT NEW MOON December 23 10:17 UT DISTANCES Apogee 405,868 km Perigee LAST QUARTER P December 16 08:56 UT α FIRST QUARTER December 30 01:21 UT December 12, 0h UT Diameter 29′ 26″ December 24, 08h UT 358,270 km Diameter 33′ 21″ FAVORABLE LIBRATIONS * Boss Crater * Mare Australe -1 1 2 3 4 Planet location shown for mid-month December 1 December 8 * Andersson Crater December 15 * Mare Orientale 42 DECEMBER 2022 * SKY & TELESCOPE Galaxy Double star December 18 USING THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE MAP Go out within an hour of a time listed to the right. Turn the map around so the yellow label for the direction you're facing is at the bottom. That's the horizon. The center of the map is overhead. Ignore the parts of the map above horizons you're not facing. Exact for latitude 40°N. -40° P H O c i n g 1 η -20° TAURUS Hyades β Aldebaran MONOCEROS NGC 2244 E g -1 0 1 2 3 4 a Galaxy Double star Variable star Open cluster Diffuse nebula Globular cluster Planetary nebula Moon Dec 7 E C L I P T ε γ S E Mars ι 10h 7h F a c α 4h F a Double Cluster +60° I OP E I A γ +80° o N 3h β i n g a F Pleiades α ε θ ζ i c n s t L Y N X c a F g n i E N δ ε α Polaris h t r E Q U A T O R Mars I C ER I DANUS Capella A U R I G A M36 M38 M37 U R S A M A J O R β CAMELOPARDALIS M82 M81 α θ B i g D i p p e r Algol P ERS EUS ε α β θ M35 G E M I N I Castor α Pollux TRIANGULUM β α γ Hamal AR I E S α γ Mira ο θ η C E T U S π Ceti τ F O R N A X α S A O R Bellatrix O R I O N Betelgeuse M42 Rigel L E P U S M34 ρ γ α δ ε ζ β γ β M33 β α α ε γ δ ο λ α δ ε ζ β γ κ Moon Dec 4