Big Sur, California, USA

Friday, January 2, 2026

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TODAY
Big Sur, California, USA

That morning

Sunrise

7:18 AM

7:18 AM

6:50 AM Blue hour
7:18 AM Sunrise
7:58 AM Golden hour ends

Sunset

5:04 PM

5:04 PM

Too far ahead for a weather forecast. These are the sun's own times - they will not change.

4:24 PM Golden hour
5:04 PM Sunset
5:32 PM Blue hour ends

Rocket launch

Falcon 9 Block 5 | CSG-3

Launched - fair from here

Lifted off 6:09 PM

Very LowExcellent

Space jellyfish possible 6:16 PM–6:18 PM, S about 8° up

Look
SSE
Heading away from you
When
6:09 PM
Highest around 6:12 PM
Distance
132 mi
Climbs to
14°
Lighting
Twilight window
Launch site
Space Launch Complex 4E
Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
Landing
6:17 PM
Land - Landing Zone 4, back toward SSE

The sun is far enough down that the ground is dark and still high enough to light the plume: exhaust expanding into near-vacuum turns into a glowing bell visible for hundreds of miles.

Meteor shower

Quadrantids

Best around 4:49 AM

Very LowExcellent
6:34 PM Dark enough
4:49 AM Best
5:48 AM Too light
Estimate
~28/hour
from a dark spot here
Radiant climbs to
48°
Under a perfect sky
110/hour
Moonlight
66% lost
Speed
41 km/s

The estimate is how many you might really see from a dark spot here, allowing for how high the shower climbs and for moonlight. "Under a perfect sky" is the best case. The bar also counts the forecast cloud at the best time, so a clouded-out night sits at the bottom, as does rain on the radar now.

Its peak is short: only a few hours either side of it are worth watching.

Full moon

Full Wolf Moon

Rises 4:17 PM in the NE

4:17 PM – 7:53 AM

Named for the wolves heard howling on long midwinter nights.

ENE WNW
4:17 PM Moonrise
4:41 PM 4°
12:07 AM Highest, 81°
7:30 AM 4°
7:53 AM Moonset

Between the two 4° marks the Moon is clear of haze and most of what stands on the horizon.

Rises
4:17 PM in the NE
Exactly full
2:03 AM
Distance
225,151 mi

The disc is biggest and most orange in the first half hour above the horizon, and moonrise here is worked out to the minute for a flat horizon.

Timetable

  • Morning blue hour 6:50 AM–7:18 AM
  • Moonset 6:55 AM
  • Morning best color 7:15 AM
  • Sunrise 7:18 AM
  • Morning golden hour 7:18 AM–7:58 AM
  • Moonrise 4:18 PM
  • Evening golden hour 4:24 PM–5:04 PM
  • Sunset 5:04 PM
  • Evening blue hour 5:04 PM–5:32 PM
  • Fully dark 6:35 PM–5:47 AM
  • Dark, no Moon Not tonight - the Moon is up

Upcoming celestial events for Big Sur, California, USA

Falcon 9 Block 5 | SDA Tranche 1 Tracking Layer A No date yet - NET Q4 2026 Sun 1 Nov 2026 Falcon 9 Block 5 | SDA Tranche 1 Tracking Layer C No date yet - NET Q4 2026 Sun 1 Nov 2026 Tiangong space station Bright pass, W to ENE, 37 deg up
Wed 28 Oct 2026 6:47 PM Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 15-18 Marginal, look SSE
Fri 30 Oct 2026 8:48 PM Halloween Halloween night in Big Sur - waning gibbous moon
Sat 31 Oct 2026 6:00 PM Día de Muertos Día de Muertos in Big Sur - sunset at 5:11 PM Sun 1 Nov 2026 5:11 PM Partial lunar eclipse 6% of the Moon in shadow
Tue 11 Jan 2028 8:13 PM Partial solar eclipse 54.1% of the Sun covered
Sun 14 Jan 2029 8:21 AM Total lunar eclipse 48% of it above your horizon
Mon 25 Jun 2029 8:22 PM Partial solar eclipse 0.9% of the Sun covered
Fri 14 Nov 2031 1:27 PM Partial solar eclipse 34.5% of the Sun covered
Wed 30 Mar 2033 10:20 AM Total lunar eclipse Totality lasts 78 minutes
Fri 7 Oct 2033 3:55 AM Partial solar eclipse 3.5% of the Sun covered
Sun 2 Sep 2035 7:33 PM Total lunar eclipse 45% of it above your horizon
Wed 6 Aug 2036 7:51 PM Partial solar eclipse 7.2% of the Sun covered
Thu 9 Apr 2043 11:41 AM Partial solar eclipse 81.6% of the Sun covered
Tue 23 Aug 2044 7:05 PM Partial solar eclipse 88.4% of the Sun covered
Sat 12 Aug 2045 9:17 AM

Every celestial event, and where else to see it