When was the last new moon?

The last new moon was on Friday, December 19, 2025 at 8:43 p.m. EST. It was the twelfth and last new moon of 2025.

The four primary lunar phases are the new moon, the first quarter, the full moon, and the last quarter. The lunar month last approximately a month or 29.53 days on average, also called a synodic month.

A new moon is the first lunar phase. You may be able to see a hint of it of it in the night sky. A full moon occurs when the Earth is directly between the Sun and the Moon, allowing the moon to appear illuminated entirely. The first quarter moon occurs between the new moon and the full moon, and the last quarter moon occurs after the full moon and before the next new moon.

All times and dates are in the United States Eastern Time Zone, with Daylight Savings Time observed for part of the year. The dates in your local time may shift.

Take a look back at the last new moon

The last new moon was on Friday, December 19th at 8:43 p.m. The December New Moon was the twelfth new moon of the year and was the New Moon in Sagittarius. It started the lunar cycle for the wolf moon.

The December 19 new moon was the last new moon of Autumn as the last new moon after the Autumnal Equinox. Depending on the year, the December New Moon is either at the end of Autumn or at the beginning of Winter. The next new moon will be the first new moon of Winter. The season changed on Sunday, December 21st at 10:03 a.m. with the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year.

Name of the New Moon

In 2025, the name of the previous new moon was the New Wolf Moon as it was the start of the Wolf Moon cycle.

The Wolf Moon nickname is given to the January full moon, named for wolves howling at the moon.

It’s also been referred to as the Ice Moon, Old Moon, Moon After Yule, and Snow Moon. Sometimes full moon names overlap, and the Snow Moon name is commonly used to refer to the February full moon.

Was there a Solar Eclipse during the New Moon?

No, there was not be a solar eclipse during the previous new moon on December 19th. The solar eclipses occurred in March and September for the year.

Was the previous new moon a supermoon or micromoon?

No, there was not a new supermoon or new micromoon in December.

The 2025 super new moons occurred from February to June. And the new micro moon was in November.

A supermoon is a full or new moon that nearly coincides with the closest point at which the Moon comes to Earth in its orbit, called perigee. There isn’t an official definition of the exact distance the moon needs to be to be called a supermoon. It’s approximately 360,000 kilometers or closer, depending on the definition.

The new moon must be at least 405,000 km away from the Earth to be considered a micromoon.

Was December a black moon?

No, there was not a black moon in December. December only had one new moon, not two. Recently there was a seasonal black moon in August as summer had an extra new moon.

There are multipe definitions of black moons. The most common, and the one you likely know, is when two new moons occur in the same month. The second new moon is typically called a black moon.

The second definition relates to having an extra new moon on the calendar during a season. When a season has four new moons, the third new moon is also called a black moon or a seasonal black moon.

The other definitions of a black moon are related to February when the month doesn’t have both a full and new moon.

Lunar month starting with the December New Moon

Below are the four core moon phases for the Wolf Moon, including the new moon, first quarter, full moon, and last quarter.