On Monday night, Luxembourg residents were treated to quite the amazing cosmic spectacle, featuring not one but two celestial marvels: the year’s first full moon, known as the “Wolf Moon,” and the approach of Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS)
The Wolf Moon lit up the night sky at precisely 11.12pm, radiating from the constellation Gemini. With an impressive brilliance of -12.5 star magnitude, it was visible to the naked eye despite some occasional clouds.
Why is it called the Wolf Moon? Many of us are familiar with names like Supermoon, Pink Moon, or Sturgeon Moon, each name carrying its own story. This particular one is most likely inspired by Native American folklore, and draws its name from the howls of wolves that can be heard through the cold months of January and February.
But that wasn’t all! Comet ATLAS made its closest pass to the Sun yesterday, possibly becoming one of the brightest comets of the year, with an apparent magnitude comparable to Venus (-3.8). Although it was not fully visible to the naked eye, weather conditions were good enough to offer telescope owners the chance to spot this celestial body.
Did you catch the magic? Here are some stunning photos our readers shared with the RTL team.
