Lunar perigee 2025: When is the next one?

The moon at perigee
The moon at perigee, the closest point from the earth in its elliptical orbit. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

The moon at perigee

The distance of the moon from the earth always changes because the moon orbits in an elliptical orbit around the earth.

The moon reaches perigee, meaning it reaches the closest point to the earth in its elliptical orbit. Here, perigee comes from two words: peri, meaning near, and geo, meaning earth.

The moon appears 5 to 8% larger than usual when it reaches perigee.

Now, these closest distances vary every time the moon reaches perigee. This is because the orbit of the moon wobbles due to the gravitational perturbations of the sun.

The full moon at perigee

A supermoon is about 7% larger than an average full moon
A supermoon is about 7% larger than an average full moon. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

If a full moon occurs near perigee then it’s called a supermoon. A supermoon is about 7% larger than a regular full moon and about 14% larger than a micromoon.

How often is the moon at perigee?

The moon reaches perigee once every anomalistic month or 27.555 days. The moon takes 27.555 days to complete one orbit around the Earth with respect to the perigee. This is called an anomalistic month

Now, the moon takes 27.322 days to complete one orbit around the Earth with respect to the background stars. This is called a sidereal month. So an anomalistic month is slightly longer than a sidereal month.

When is the next lunar perigee in 2025?

The moon will reach its next perigee on March 1, 2025, at 21:18 UTC (4:18 p.m. EST).

Distance of the moon: During the perigee, the distance of the moon from the earth will be 361,967 kilometers. The average distance of the moon from the earth is 384,400 kilometers.

Angular diameter: During the perigee, the angular diameter (disk size) of the moon will be 33.01 arcminutes. The average angular diameter of the moon is 31 arcminutes.

Moon phase: During the perigee, the moon will be in the waxing crescent phase and 5% illuminated.

When is the moon closest to Earth in 2025?

The moon will be closest to Earth on November 5, 2025, at 22:29 UTC, when it will be 356,833 km away. This will be the shortest distance between the Earth and the moon in 2025.

Lunar perigee dates for 2025 with distances

Here are all the dates of lunar perigee in 2025, along with their distances, according to NASA:

DateTime (UTC)Distance (km)Angular diameter (arcmin)
January 0723:3537017332.28
February 0202:4336745732.52
March 0121:1836196733.01
March 3005:2635812733.37
April 2716:1535711933.46
May 2601:3735902333.28
June 2304:4336317832.90
July 2013:5236804732.47
August 1418:0136928732.36
September 1012:1036478132.76
October 0812:3635981933.21
November 0522:2935683333.49
December 04 11:0635696233.48
Related article: Lunar apogee 2025: When is the next one?

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About the Author

Ashim

Ashim Chandra Sarkar founded Space & Telescope in 2022. He holds a M.Sc. in physics and has five years of research experience in optical astronomy. His passion for astronomy inspired him to open this website. He is responsible for the editorial vision of spaceandtelescope.com.

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