Among both men and women, drinking just one alcoholic beverage a day increases the risk of liver cirrhosis, esophageal cancer, oral cancer and various types of injuries, according to a federal analysis of alcohol’s health effects issued on Tuesday.

Women face a higher risk of developing liver cancer at this level of drinking, but a lower risk of diabetes. And while one alcoholic drink daily also reduces the likelihood of strokes caused by blood clots among both men and women, the report found, even occasional heavy drinking negates the benefits.

The report, prepared by an outside scientific review panel under the auspices of the Department of Health and Human Services, is one of two competing assessments that will be used to shape the influential U.S. Dietary Guidelines, which are to be updated this year.

The government has for several decades recommended a limit of two standard alcoholic drinks per day for men and one for women.

In December, a review of the data by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine supported this advice, finding that moderate drinking was linked to fewer heart attack and stroke deaths, and fewer deaths overall, compared with no drinking.

But some experts fear that the harms of moderate drinking have been understated, particularly the risk of cancer, which is the leading cause of death among people under 85, according to the American Cancer Society.

In 2020, the last time the dietary guidelines came up for review, scientific advisers suggested lowering the recommendation to one drink daily for both men and women. That advice did not appear in the final guidelines.

The analysis from the National Academies tied moderate drinking in women to a small but significant increase in breast cancer, but said there was insufficient evidence to tie alcohol to other cancers.

This month, however, the U.S. Surgeon General, citing mounting scientific evidence, called for labeling alcohol with cancer warnings similar to those that appear on cigarettes. The report issued on Tuesday found that the increased cancer risk comes with any amount of alcohol consumption and rises with higher levels of drinking.

Drinking is linked to a higher risk of death for seven types of cancer, including breast cancer, colorectal cancer, liver cancer as well as cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx and larynx and esophagus.

Men and women are both vulnerable to these health harms, but women are much more likely to develop a cancer linked to drinking, the report said.

“Among the U.S. population, the risk of dying from alcohol use begins at low levels of average use,” the report said. “Higher levels of alcohol consumption are linked with progressively higher mortality risk.”

Those who consume more than seven drinks per week have a one in 1,000 risk of dying from a condition related to alcohol. The risk increases to one in 100 if consumption is more than nine drinks a week.

This article will be updated.

The first full moon of the year will glide through the sky on Monday night. For lucky stargazers in some parts of the world, it will also pass in front of the more-brilliantly-red-than-usual Mars in an event known as a lunar occultation.

But that’s not all January’s sky has to offer. A new comet, expected to be the brightest of the year, is nearing its closest approach to the sun on Monday — though spotting it, at least in northern skies, will be tricky.

What is a lunar occultation?

According to NASA, a lunar occultation occurs when the moon passes in front of an object, like a distant planet, that appears much smaller in the sky. An occultation is similar to a solar eclipse — when the moon obscures the sun — but much less grand.

Lunar occultations can happen several times a year and when the moon is in any phase. Earlier this month, a crescent moon that slipped over Saturn was visible for people in Europe, northern Africa and parts of Greenland and Russia.

What’s special about this one?

Mars has been appearing bigger and brighter in the night sky as it nears Earth. It is approaching what is known as opposition, which occurs when Mars is on the opposite side of Earth as the sun. During opposition, Mars is closer to us than usual and its face is fully lit by the sun as viewed from our world, making for spectacular views of the Red Planet.

Mars is in opposition every 26 months. This year, it reaches opposition on Jan. 15 at 9:32 p.m. Eastern time. But the planet has been steadily growing more brilliant since November.

How can I see the lunar occultation?

Only people in North America and parts of Africa will be able to see the moon occult Mars on Monday. Elsewhere, Mars will just appear close to the moon, a celestial occurrence known as a conjunction. The occultation will last for more than an hour in some places and be visible with the unaided eye, though binoculars or a telescope will enhance the view.

The event will begin at different times, depending on where you live. According to a chart published by the International Occultation Timing Association, Mars will disappear behind the moon on Monday at 6:21 p.m. in Seattle, 9:16 p.m. in Washington, D.C., and 9:21 p.m. in New York City, all local times. Observers in Montreal will see the occultation start at 9:25 p.m., and in Accra, Ghana, at 4:53 a.m., before sunrise on Tuesday.

What about the comet?

Comet ATLAS, or C/2024 G3 to astronomers, was spotted last April by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System and shares the name of many other comets discovered by the network of telescopes, including Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, which blazed through the sky last October.

Like all comets, C/2024 G3 is a frozen chunk of material left over from the formation of the solar system that has begun to melt as it approaches the sun. It will reach perihelion, or its closest approach to the sun, on Jan. 13, and come within 8.4 million miles of the solar surface.

Some comets disintegrate from the heat. But if they survive the encounter, perihelion is when they are expected to be brightest — though being so close to the sun can make them difficult to see.

How can I see Comet ATLAS?

Some observers in the Northern Hemisphere have already spotted Comet ATLAS, a fuzzy dot with a short tail, low on the eastern horizon before sunrise. Because of its altitude and the light of dawn, it is difficult to see, especially without binoculars or a telescope.

Closer to perihelion, those with an unobstructed view of the western horizon may be able to catch the comet in the evening near the setting sun. Interactive star maps like this one can help with figuring out where and when to look.

If Comet ATLAS survives perihelion, it will migrate to skies in the Southern Hemisphere in the latter half of January, and be visible there in the evenings after sunset. As the comet moves away from the sun it will climb higher in the sky, but also grow dimmer each day.