Hunter's and Harvest moons set to rise over American skies next month

Sep 23 2020, 7:21 pm

The spookiest time of year is about to add some seriously gorgeous moons to its repertoire.

The month of October has two full moons this year (because, of course, it does in 2020): the full Harvest Moon on October 1 and the full Hunter’s Moon on Halloween.

As musician Neil Young says, “But there’s a full moon risin’. Let’s go dancin’ in the light.”

According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, both moons relate to the astronomical event of the autumnal equinox— the astronomical start of the fall season in the Northern Hemisphere and of the spring season in the Southern Hemisphere (also called the September or fall equinox).

The first full moon rises on Thursday, October 1 and will reach its peak illumination at 5:06 pm (ET), and Halloween’s full moon will hit peak illumination at 10:51 am (ET). Both moons will be best viewed after sunset.

For several days around the time of the full Harvest Moon (October 1), the moon will rise 30 minutes later each night resulting in “extra light early in the evening which makes this time of year special.”

As the moon rises from the horizon around sunset, it may appear larger and more orange — perfect for the beginning of the fall season.

Here’s how October’s moons will line up in terms of dates and times, all presented in Eastern Time.

Almanac.com

For moon gazers who want to know the exact time of moonrise in their location, they should check out the Almanacs Moonrise and Moonset calculator.

Ty JadahTy Jadah

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