Last supermoon of the year illuminates the night sky over Pakistan

The Cold Moon, the last supermoon of 2025, lights up the night sky in Karachi, Pakistan, on December 4, 2025. (REUTERS/File)
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Updated 05 December 2025
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Last supermoon of the year illuminates the night sky over Pakistan

  • ‘Cold moon’ visible from Thursday evening to early Friday 
  • Brightest supermoon of the year occurred earlier on Nov. 5

LAHORE: Astronomy enthusiasts, students and families gathered in Pakistan’s cultural capital Lahore on Thursday night to observe the final supermoon of 2025.

It’s the third supermoon of the year and the last supermoon of 2025, according to Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO).

A supermoon occurs when a full moon coincides with the Moon’s closest point to Earth in its orbit, causing it to appear slightly larger and brighter than usual.

There are typically three to four supermoons in a year.

“It looks just beautiful, a delight. It is bright and shiny. I like watching full moon and always watch it when bright and full. Watching full moon always gives me a soothing pleasure,” resident of Lahore Saeeda Ahmed said. 

“The supermoon is beautiful,” said another resident Ahsan Rasheed.

“There is a waterfall nearby and it’s reflection in water is enhancing the beauty. As you can feel the moon is very bright today. It is brighter than an ordinary full moon.”

The December full moon is traditionally called the Cold Moon due to its appearance in the Northern Hemisphere’s winter season.

SUPARCO on Wednesday encouraged astronomy enthusiasts, families and students to observe the event, noting that no special optical gear is required.

The brightest supermoon of the year occurred earlier on Nov. 5, when the Moon came slightly closer at 356,978 km. 

Pakistan’s space agency said 2025 has been one of the most favorable years for sky-watchers in South Asia, with multiple clear viewing windows and high illumination.


Pakistan expresses solidarity with Canada as school shooting claims 9 lives

Updated 11 February 2026
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Pakistan expresses solidarity with Canada as school shooting claims 9 lives

  • At least 9 dead, 27 wounded in shooting incident at secondary school, residence in British Columbia on Tuesday
  • Officials say the shooter was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after the incident

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday expressed solidarity with Canada as a high school shooting incident in a British Columbia town left at least nine dead, more than 20 others injured. 

Six people were found at the Tumbler Ridge Secondary School while a seventh died on the way to the hospital, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said in a statement on Tuesday. Two other people were found dead at a home that police believe is connected to the shooting at the school. A total of 27 people were wounded in the attack. 

In an initial emergency alert, police described the suspect as a “female in a dress with brown hair,” with officials saying she was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

“Saddened by the tragic shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia,” Sharif wrote on social media platform X.

He conveyed his condolences to the families of the victims, wishing a swift recovery to those injured in the attack. 

“Pakistan stands in solidarity with the people and Government of Canada in this difficult time,” he added. 

Canadian police have not yet released any information about the age of the shooter or the victims.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “devastated” by the violence, announcing he had suspended plans to travel to the Munich Security Conference on Wednesday.

While mass shootings are rare in Canada, last April, a vehicle attack that targeted a Filipino cultural festival in Vancouver killed 11 people.

British Columbia Premier David Eby called the latest violence “unimaginable.”

Nina Krieger, British Columbia’s minister of public safety, described it as one of the “worst mass shootings” in Canada’s history.