Today, the 3rd of January 2026, two interesting events concern our planet: the first full moon of the year and the Earth has never been so close to the sun.
The Full Moon is the brightest lunar phase, and tonight, if the weather permits it, many of us will stand in the light of the first Full Moon of 2026. The Moon’s full phase is registered on January 3 at 10:03 UTC, while only about 7 hours later planet Earth reaches its 2026 perihelion, the closest point in its elliptical orbit around the Sun, precisely at 17:16 UTC. January’s Full Moon was also not far from its own perigee, or closest approach to planet Earth. For this lunation the Moon’s perigee was on January 1 at 21:44 UTC.
That’s not all, you can also spot planet Jupiter, near its brightest for 2026 and close on the sky to the Full Moon tonight. But while you’re out skygazing don’t forget to look for rare, bright fireballs from the Quadrantid meteor shower. The Quadrantids have the potential to be the strongest shower of the year but usually fall short due to the short length of maximum activity (6 hours) and the poor weather experienced during early January.
Despite our closest proximity to the Sun, in the north emisphere we are in the middle of winter, the coldest season. In the Southern Hemisphere it’s currently midsummer instead. The explanation is that the Earth-Sun distance varies only about 3% over the course of a year, so not much detectable. The real reason of seasons alternation is the tilt of the Earth’s axis.
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