Stargazing over the Christmas holidays: 10 sights to get you looking up
There are few better sights in nature than the December night sky. Bright stars like Betelgeuse, Capella, Aldebaran, Sirius, and the stars of Orion’s Belt dominate the night sky after dark, but during the two weeks from December 20, 2025 to January 4, 2026, you will be able to follow unique astronomical events.
Seen from the northern hemisphere this year, a crescent moon will curl across the western sky just before Christmas Day, before passing Saturn and the Pleiades. Meanwhile, Jupiter shines as a bright “Christmas star” in the east just after dark.
Add in two meteor showers and a full “Super Wolf Moon,” and ’tis the season for looking outside! Here’s how to follow the show night after evening…
1. Jupiter shines like the “Christmas star”
When to see: December 25, 2025 to January 1. 10, 2026
Go outside about 90 minutes after sunset and look east. The brightest “star” rising in the sky is Jupiter, which shines with a constant light. It will be your planetary companion for the rest of the year: a seasonal lantern that grows taller and more visible every night.
If it looks like the “Star of Bethlehem” or the “Christmas Star”, it is because it is closest to its opposition – the brightest ever – on January 10, 2026.
2. Ursid Meteor Shower
When to see: December 21 and 22, 2025
Today marks the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere – the shortest day and longest, darkest night of the year. After dusk, a waxing crescent moon, lit at 3%, hangs in the southwest at dusk, sinking below the horizon shortly after, leaving the sky wonderfully dark for the summit of the Ursids.
It’s not a particularly strong meteor shower, but the likelihood of about 10 “shooting stars” per hour in a moonless night sky makes it a good opportunity to stargaze or head out with your astrophotography camera if the sky is clear. Pack well, leave after about 11 p.m. and stay an hour or two if you can.
3. “Earthshine” on a crescent moon
When to see: After sunset, December 22-24, 2025.
The highlight of the few evenings between the winter solstice and Christmas Day is a waxing crescent moon in the western sky shortly after sunset. On December 22, a 7% illuminated crescent moon will display “Earthshine,” sunlight reflecting off Earth’s clouds and oceans and gently illuminating the night side of the moon.
On December 23, it will be 13% illuminated and shine near the star Fomalhaut, the brightest star in the constellation Piscis Austrinus, the southern fish. Christmas Eve brings a waxing crescent moon now 21% illuminated forming an unbalanced triangle with Fomalhaut on the lower left and Saturn on the upper left.
4. “Santa’s Sleigh” on Christmas Eve
When to see: December 24 and 25, 2025
Check NASA data Locate the station or apps to see if an International Space Station pass is visible from your location. If you’re lucky, it will appear in the west as a bright, steady point of light that glides across the sky in just a few minutes, brighter than almost any star. For younger observers, it makes a perfect “Santa’s sleigh,” circling the Earth every 90 minutes while stockings are hung and presents wrapped.
5. The group of Christmas trees
When to see: At nightfall, anytime in December and January
For those who own a large telescope today, there is a tempting festive lens. Buried in the faint constellation Monoceros, Unicorn – east of Orion – is the Christmas Tree Cluster (NGC 2264).
It’s not visible to the naked eye, but if you’re under dark skies and have binoculars or a small telescope, you can look for the small triangular cluster of stars that gives this region its holiday nickname. This young star cluster is about 2,500 light years from the solar system.
6. Saturn and the Moon in conjunction
When to see: December 26, 2025
Boxing Day brings a beautiful association of the Moon and Saturn. As night falls, look high to the south to find the bright moon, which is now in its first quarter phase and therefore half-lit. Nearby, a few finger-widths away at arm’s length, is Saturn as a steady, golden point of light.
7. Orion
When to see: At nightfall, anytime in December and January
It’s one of the most famous constellations in the night sky, but only in winter is Orion at its best. Best known for Orion’s Belt – also called the “Three Kings” – there is much more to find than Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka. Each side features four stars arranged in a loose rectangle around the belt stars – reddish Saiph and Betelgeuse on one side and bluish Bellatrix and Rigel on the other.
Use any pair of binoculars to find Orion’s “snake” – an S-shaped loop of stars between Alnilam and Mintaka – then point them at the nearby blurry area. This is the Orion Nebula (M42), a stellar nursery where stars are created.
8. The Pleiades and the moon
When to see: December 31, 2025 to January 1. 1st 2026
New Year’s Eve marks a close encounter between the most beautiful star cluster in the night sky and a nearly full moon. As night falls, look east to see a nearly full moon rising in Taurus, with the Pleiades – also known as the Seven Sisters – nestled just to one side.
At mid-northern latitudes, the moon may appear to brush against the cluster during the evening, its bright halo almost wrapping around the tiny spangles of stars, although moonlight will blot out the fainter members of the Pleiades.
9. A rising Super Wolf Moon
When to see: Saturday January 3
Tonight’s full Wolf Moon is the fourth and final supermoon in a row. Best seen rising in the east at sunset, this full moon coincides with perigeewhen the Moon is at its closest point to Earth in its monthly orbit.
About 30% brighter than the average full moon, it will dominate the sky all night and appear slightly larger than normal, especially when it is low on the horizon and framed by trees, rooftops or distant hills. The time to catch it is when the the moon rises where you are.
While the best astrophotography lenses are ideal for wide-angle shots of the Milky Way, the best lenses for moon photography are actually large zoom telephoto lenses that are typically used more for wildlife photography.
10. Quadrantid meteor shower
When to see: on the night of January 3 to 4, 2026
Before dawn on January 4, the Quadrantid meteor shower reaches its official peak. Conditions aren’t ideal this year as the moon will be very bright, but if you’re awake before dawn and the sky is clear, it’s worth keeping a brief eye on the shower.
Find a spot to observe where you can keep your back to the moon, or where it is hidden behind a roofline or trees, then look above you and to the northeast. Even with the glare, a few bright meteors may streak across the sky from time to time, appearing to radiate from a point near the Boötes constellation.
