The Harvest Moon

For those of us who wonder why the "harvest moon" is called that, the kind folks at Space Weather (a NOAA project: Space Weather) give this brief explanation:

HARVEST MOON: There's a full Moon tonight (Wed., Sept. 26) and it has a special name–the "Harvest Moon," the full Moon closest to the autumnal equinox. In the days before electric lights, farmers relied on moonlight to help them gather ripening autumn crops. The bright Harvest Moon allowed their work to continue late into the night. Now, post-Edison, we appreciate the Harvest Moon more for its beauty than its utility. Moonrise happens tonight at sunset; look east and enjoy the view!

P.S. If it's not obvious that full-moon moonrise happens at sunset, you might want to ponder it for a moment. Here's a hint: solar eclipses can only happen at times of new moon, and lunar eclipses can only happen during times of full moon. Will it surprise your friends to learn that they will never see a cresent moon late at night?

Posted on September 26, 2007 at 11.25 by jns · Permalink
In: All, Naming Things

One Response

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  1. Written by S.W. Anderson
    on Thursday, 27 September 2007 at 00.26
    Permalink

    Went walking last evening and was blown away by the huge, bright, vivid moon rising just above the eastern horizon. Wow! I thought that was a full moon, though.

    Re: crescent moons, perhaps I'm not recalling correctly, but I could swear I've seen them past 11 or midnight. Hmmm.

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