Harvest Moon Lights Up Skies and Marks Start of Festivals Worldwide

By April Rubin

If you're someone who rejoices at any hint of fall, you might want to take a look at the moon this weekend.

A full moon will be visible across the United States, and especially in places with clear skies, signaling that summer is coming to an end. Because of how light is scattered through the atmosphere and the moon's position on the horizon, the moon appears reddish-orange.

The Harvest Moon, whose name grew out of its usefulness to farmers who harvested crops in the fall before the advent of artificial lighting, will appear full for about three nights and is the full moon that occurs closest to the fall equinox on September 22. Northern hemisphere. It started on Thursday night and will be full until Sunday morning.

On Saturday night at 8:23 p.m. in the east, the moon will appear four degrees above the eastern horizon, according to NASA. Jupiter appears to the left of the moon, Saturn above the southeastern horizon, and the star Vega, one of the brightest in our night sky, above the horizon.

According to NASA, Jupiter, Saturn and the stars move west each night during the full moon. Jupiter will shine brightest this year on September 26.

In New York, Saturday night's moon will rise at about 7:45 p.m. East; it will be there until about 6:30 on Sunday. The moon will rise around 8:07 PM in Houston. local time and set around 7:10 a.m. Sunday. And in San Francisco, the moon will rise around 8:01 PM. local time and set around 6:57 a.m. the following morning.

Full moons always rise near sunset opposite the sun, which can give them a reddish-orange hue, said Kevin Lewis, associate professor of planetary geophysics at Johns Hopkins University. "Anywhere with clear skies you should have a great view," he said.

The moon usually rises an average of 50 minutes later each day as it moves through its cycle, but during the harvest moon the timing changes by a smaller interval each night, closer to 15 or 20 minutes depending on where you live. The Farmer's Almanac, which would give farmers those few extra minutes in the days before the advent of artificial lighting.

The first known reference to the full moon as a harvest moon dates back to 1706, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, but cultures around the world have different terms for it and associated traditions.

The Algonquin people of the northeastern United States called it the corn moon "because it was the time to harvest their main staple crops of corn, pumpkins, squash, beans, and wild rice," according to NASA.

The full moon coincides with the Mid-Autumn Festival celebrated in China, Vietnam and elsewhere, which in part involves sacrifices to the moon goddess. In Japan, the month is also called Imo Meigetsu, or the potato harvest month, and sweet potatoes or taro may be offered along with moon viewing festivals.

The lunar phenomenon marks the beginning of the Pitru Paksha festival, "a sacred event in Hindu culture when people remember their ancestors," according to The Times of India. Some Buddhists will commemorate Madhu Purnima, or the festival of offering honey.

Other named full moons will appear later this year: the Hunter’s Moon on October 9, the Beaver Moon on November 8, and the Cold Moon on December 7.