The Wolf Moon, January’s full moon, reaches full at 7:17 a.m. EST (12:17 UTC) on Friday, January 22, 2027. It is the only supermoon of 2027 and the closest full moon of the year.
The Wolf Moon is the traditional name for the full moon of January. In 2027, it falls on the morning of Friday, January 22, in every US time zone.
The exact moment of the full moon comes around sunrise on the East Coast and before dawn in the West. That makes the best evenings to see the Wolf Moon rising Thursday, January 21, and Friday, January 22, when it is 99% and 100% lit.
At about 357,650 km from Earth, the 2027 Wolf Moon is also a supermoon, the only one of the year.
This page gives the exact time in every US time zone, moonrise times for four US cities, the Wolf Moon dates from 2026 to 2031, and the origin of the name. It is the first entry in Datescal’s Full Moon Calendar 2027: Every Full Moon Date, Time and Sign.
Table of Contents
When is the Wolf Moon 2027?
The Wolf Moon 2027 is full at 12:17 UTC on Friday, January 22, 2027, according to the U.S. Naval Observatory.
| Time zone | Wolf Moon 2027 (exact full moon) |
|---|---|
| UTC | Friday, January 22, 12:17 p.m. |
| US Eastern | Friday, January 22, 7:17 a.m. EST |
| US Central | Friday, January 22, 6:17 a.m. CST |
| US Mountain | Friday, January 22, 5:17 a.m. MST |
| US Pacific | Friday, January 22, 4:17 a.m. PST |
| Alaska | Friday, January 22, 3:17 a.m. AKST |
| Hawaii | Friday, January 22, 2:17 a.m. HST |
| London | Friday, January 22, 12:17 p.m. GMT |
| India | Friday, January 22, 5:47 p.m. IST |
| Sydney | Friday, January 22, 11:17 p.m. AEDT |
Unlike most 2027 full moons, the Wolf Moon falls on the same calendar date, Friday, January 22, in every time zone shown.
The full moon before it was at 8:28 p.m. EST on Wednesday, December 23, 2026. The next, the Snow Moon, follows at 6:23 p.m. EST on Saturday, February 20, 2027.
Wolf Moon moonrise times in US cities
The Moon looks full on the night before and the night after the exact moment of full moon. The table below gives moonrise and moonset times in four US cities for January 21 and 22, 2027, with the share of the Moon’s disc that is lit. The times come from the Naval Observatory’s rise and set data.
| City | Thursday, January 21: moonrise (lit) | Friday, January 22: moonset | Friday, January 22: moonrise (lit) |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York (EST) | 4:02 p.m. (99%) | 7:27 a.m. | 5:25 p.m. (100%) |
| Chicago (CST) | 3:56 p.m. (99%) | 7:26 a.m. | 5:19 p.m. (100%) |
| Denver (MST) | 4:17 p.m. (99%) | 7:31 a.m. | 5:38 p.m. (100%) |
| Los Angeles (PST) | 4:30 p.m. (99%) | 7:11 a.m. | 5:47 p.m. (100%) |
At the exact moment of full moon, the Wolf Moon sits low in the western sky in New York. It sets there at 7:27 a.m., 13 minutes after the 7:14 a.m. sunrise. In Los Angeles, where the full moon rises at 4:17 a.m. PST, the Moon is still well above the horizon in a dark sky.
For most viewers, the best view is the rising Moon on the evening of Friday, January 22. In these four cities, it comes up 24 to 34 minutes after sunset, low in the eastern sky against twilight.
Wolf Moon dates for 2026 to 2031
The Wolf Moon comes about 11 days earlier each year, then jumps later in years when a 13th full moon falls into the calendar.
The table below lists the January full moon for each year from 2026 to 2031, from the Naval Observatory’s tables for 2026, 2028, 2029, 2030, and 2031.
| Year | Wolf Moon (Eastern Time) | Pacific Time | UTC |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Saturday, January 3, 5:03 a.m. EST | Saturday, January 3, 2:03 a.m. PST | Jan 3, 10:03 |
| 2027 | Friday, January 22, 7:17 a.m. EST | Friday, January 22, 4:17 a.m. PST | Jan 22, 12:17 |
| 2028 | Tuesday, January 11, 11:03 p.m. EST | Tuesday, January 11, 8:03 p.m. PST | Jan 12, 04:03 |
| 2029 | Tuesday, January 30, 1:03 a.m. EST | Monday, January 29, 10:03 p.m. PST | Jan 30, 06:03 |
| 2030 | Saturday, January 19, 10:54 a.m. EST | Saturday, January 19, 7:54 a.m. PST | Jan 19, 15:54 |
| 2031 | Wednesday, January 8, 1:26 p.m. EST | Wednesday, January 8, 10:26 a.m. PST | Jan 8, 18:26 |
Two Wolf Moons in this period fall on different dates depending on the time zone. The 2028 Wolf Moon falls on January 11 in the United States but on January 12 in UTC and in Europe.
The 2029 Wolf Moon falls on Monday, January 29, on the West Coast but on Tuesday, January 30, in the East. Before the 2029 Wolf Moon comes December 2028’s second full moon, on December 31.
What is the Wolf Moon?
The Wolf Moon is a traditional name for the full moon of January. A full moon is the instant the Moon stands opposite the Sun, 180 degrees away along the ecliptic, so its whole Earth-facing side is lit. The name does not mark any astronomical difference from other full moons.
Where the Wolf Moon name comes from
American almanacs popularised the Wolf Moon name. The Old Farmer’s Almanac says the name is believed to come from wolves being heard howling more often at this time of year.
It adds that the old idea that wolves howled because of winter hunger is wrong: wolves howl to coordinate with each other and to mark territory. NASA, quoted by WGME, notes that the Maine Farmers’ Almanac began publishing “Indian” names for full moons in the 1930s.
The origin is disputed. According to Wikipedia, the 1937 Maine Farmers’ Almanac said its names “were named by our early English ancestors.”
The US Army officer Richard Irving Dodge wrote in 1882 that he had never met Native Americans who used a fixed, conventional name for any particular moon. Many sources still describe the Wolf Moon as a Native American name.
Other names for the January full moon
The Old Farmer’s Almanac lists these other names for the January full moon, with the peoples it attributes them to:
| Name | Attributed to |
|---|---|
| Center Moon | Assiniboine |
| Cold Moon, Frost Exploding Moon, Great Moon | Cree |
| Freeze Up Moon | Algonquin |
| Severe Moon, Hard Moon | Dakota |
| Canada Goose Moon | Tlingit |
| Greetings Moon | Western Abenaki |
| Spirit Moon | Ojibwe |
The 2027 Wolf Moon supermoon
The 2027 Wolf Moon is the year’s only supermoon, about 357,650 km from Earth at full. Moonblink gives 357,644 km, and Timeandspace.science gives 357,666 km.
Timeandspace.science and WhatMoonPhase both list it as the only supermoon of 2027. It is about 48,300 km closer than the farthest full moon of the year, the Buck Moon of July 18, at 405,973 km.
According to Wikipedia, a full moon at its closest looks about 14% wider and 30% brighter than one at its farthest.
The Wolf Moon and the zodiac
At the 2027 Wolf Moon, the Sun is in Aquarius, which it entered at 2:30 a.m. EST on January 20. The Moon stands opposite the Sun, in Leo. In astrology, this is called the full moon in Leo. The sign dates are on Datescal’s Leo Zodiac Sign Dates 2027 and Aquarius Zodiac Sign Dates 2027 pages.
How to see the Wolf Moon
The Wolf Moon can be seen from anywhere on Earth with a clear night sky, and no equipment is needed. For the best view in the United States:
- Check your local moonrise time for Friday, January 22, 2027. In the four cities above, it falls between 5:19 and 5:47 p.m.
- Find a spot with a clear view of the eastern horizon.
- Watch during the first hour after moonrise, while the Moon is still low near the horizon.
- Binoculars show more surface detail, but the Wolf Moon is easy to see with the naked eye.
In the Southern Hemisphere, January’s full moon falls in summer rather than winter.
What the Wolf Moon is not
Several other moon terms are often confused with the Wolf Moon. The table below sets out the differences.
| Term | What it means | Relation to the 2027 Wolf Moon |
|---|---|---|
| Wolf Moon | Traditional name for January’s full moon | Friday, January 22, 2027 |
| Supermoon | A full or new moon near the Moon’s closest approach to Earth | The 2027 Wolf Moon is also a supermoon |
| Blue Moon | A second full moon in one month, or the third of four in a season | Not a Blue Moon; 2027’s seasonal Blue Moon is May 20 |
| Blood moon | A full moon reddened by a total lunar eclipse | No eclipse on January 22, 2027 |
| “Super blood wolf moon” | Nickname for the total lunar eclipse of January 21, 2019 | A past event, not a 2027 one |
According to Wikipedia, the “super blood wolf moon” of January 21, 2019, combined a supermoon, a total lunar eclipse, and a January full moon, with 61 minutes, 59 seconds of totality.
The 2027 Wolf Moon is a supermoon and a January full moon, but there is no eclipse. All of 2027’s lunar eclipses are penumbral and fall in February, July, and August.
Frequently asked questions
When is the Wolf Moon in 2027?
The Wolf Moon in 2027 is on Friday, January 22, at 7:17 a.m. EST (12:17 UTC), according to the U.S. Naval Observatory. In Pacific Time, it falls at 4:17 a.m. PST. The best evenings to see it are Thursday, January 21, when it is 99% lit, and Friday, January 22, when it rises full shortly after sunset.
Is the 2027 Wolf Moon a supermoon?
Yes. The Wolf Moon of January 22, 2027, is the only supermoon of 2027, at about 357,650 km from Earth, the closest full moon of the year.
A full moon at its closest looks about 14% wider and 30% brighter than one at its farthest, according to Wikipedia. The farthest full moon of 2027 is the Buck Moon in July.
Why is it called the Wolf Moon?
The Old Farmer’s Almanac says the name is believed to come from wolves being heard howling more often in January.
The name spread through American almanacs, and the Maine Farmers’ Almanac began publishing such names in the 1930s. The 1937 edition attributed its names to “our early English ancestors,” so the origin of the name is disputed.
What time is the Wolf Moon tonight?
The exact moment of the 2027 Wolf Moon is 7:17 a.m. EST, 6:17 a.m. CST, 5:17 a.m. MST, and 4:17 a.m. PST on Friday, January 22. For viewing, moonrise matters more: on January 22, the Moon rises at 5:25 p.m. in New York, 5:19 p.m. in Chicago, 5:38 p.m. in Denver, and 5:47 p.m. in Los Angeles.
When is the Wolf Moon in 2028?
The 2028 Wolf Moon is on Tuesday, January 11, 2028, at 11:03 p.m. EST, which is 04:03 UTC on Wednesday, January 12, according to the U.S. Naval Observatory. It falls on January 11 everywhere in the United States but on January 12 in Europe and Asia. The 2029 Wolf Moon follows on January 30.
What sign is the Wolf Moon in 2027?
The 2027 Wolf Moon is in Leo. At full moon, the Moon sits opposite the Sun, and on January 22, 2027, the Sun is in Aquarius, which it entered on January 20. In astrology, this is called the full moon in Leo. The next full moon, the Snow Moon of February 20, is in Virgo.
