2018 supermoons: Wolf moon rises on New Year’s day

Sky gazers are in for a treat in January. The new year ushers in a trio of lunar events, beginning with two supermoons in January, the biggest and first on New Year's Day.

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The Earth will be closest to the moon on Jan. 1 and will appear bigger in the nighttime sky.

The January supermoon is also known as the Wolf Moon, named after the wolves that once howled in hunger around Native American villages during January full moons, according to the Old Farmer's Alamanac.

A supermoon rises over Boston Harbor on September 27, 2015 in Boston, Massachusetts.

Credit: Scott Eisen

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Credit: Scott Eisen

A second supermoon in one month is known as a Blue Moon and that happens on Jan. 31st.

Also on Jan. 31st, the year's only North American eclipse just before dawn. The Old Farmer's Almanac said it should be visible west of the Mississippi and in western Canada.

A supermoon, or perigee moon, rises behind the historic Mount Wilson Observatory on July 12, 2014 at Mount Wilson in the Angeles National Forest northeast of Los Angeles, California. The observatory founded by George Hale houses the 60-inch Hale telescope, built in 1908, and formerly world's largest, 100-inch Hooker telescope built in 1917. The perigree moon appears slightly brighter and larger on its closest orbits to the earth.

Credit: David McNew

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Credit: David McNew