For the first time since 1977, not coincidentally the last time Rudolph binged on reindeer games, there will be a full moon on Christmas. There won't be another one until 2034, NASA projects.
The Christmas Day full moon will reach its peak size at 6:11 a.m. ET, a NASA spokesperson confirmed on Friday. Confirming the peak time is The Old Farmer's Almanac, which notes that the full moon in December is known as the Full Cold Moon.
"It is the month when the winter cold fastens its grip and the nights become long and dark," the Almanac states. "This full Moon is also called the Long Nights Moon by some Native American tribes."
That Full Cold Moon will be followed by the Full Wolf Moon, the Full Snow Moon, Full Worm Moon, Full Pink moon and others as the months of the year each receive their turn of the moon.
The upcoming Christmas Day Full Cold Moon will just make things even easier for Santa to be tracked by Google and North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).
Google's Santa tracker has returned for an eleventh year, but this time, the Santa site has more nutritional content mixed in with the games to nurture the minds of its patrons.
"From games that introduce basic concepts of coding to geography quizzes, to providing lesson plans to teachers, Google's Santa Tracker is sneaking in learning experiences between all the fun and games," says Google.
So what's new this year is the focus on learning, along with a wider variety of games and the addition of content for Google's Cardboard virtual reality platform.
There's also a focus on nonprofits this time around. Google's Santa Tracker collaborated with Google.org on partnering with 10 organizations to "connect people to critical issues" during the holiday season.
Meanwhile, the sky watchers at NORAD have again released their Santa Tracker. NORAD has been tracking Santa since 1955, after a misprint in an ad directed children to the agency to speak with Santa.
"The Director of Operations at the time, Colonel Harry Shoup, had his staff check the radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole," NORAD says. "Children who called were given updates on his location, and a tradition was born."
