Time and Date – Travel Smart With Jodie

Pink Full Moon not really pink

(JJacobs March 2024 full moon photo)

Look for April’s full moon next week. Peak illumination will be 6:49 p.m. Central Time on Tuesday, April 23,2024. But even though it is named the Pink Moon, it won’t take on a rosy shade.

Moon names often reflect what is happening in nature so pink is for the color of the phlox blooms that usually show up in the eastern part of North America in April.

Called Phlox subulata, it is a creeping or spreading form of the wild flower also called moss phlox.

Other names for the April moon depend on when in the month it appears full and how close to Easter and Passover or weather changes it happens. So sometimes it is called the Paschal or Egg Moon or the Breaking Ice Moon, Budding Moon and Awakening Moon.

The moon will also look full April 22 and April 24 so if the sky is cloudy you can also capture its fullness the day before and after.

For more information visit The Old Farmer’s Almanac and Time and
Date.

February Snow Moon appears with temps moving up

Full Moon (J Jacobs photo) — Full Moon (J Jacobs photg)

Bright light flooded the bedroom and bath Friday, Feb.24, 2024 without turning on the switch.

It was, and will be for a couple of days, due to the Snow Moon that actually reaches full illumination at 7:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 25.

It appeared kind of small on Friday but that is because the February full moon is also a Micro full moon (as opposed to a Supermoon.

That means its apogee is farthest from Earth. In this case that is about 252,225 miles away.

It is called the Snow Moon because February, typically, though not in 2024 in which the Earth is experiencing climate change events, has more snow than the other months.

In the Chicago area, the first measurable snow fell Feb. 23 and covered the ground due to cold temps, through Feb. 24.

But the snow is disappearing Feb. 25 due to unusually high temps. However, look up and see the “Snow Moon” Sunday night.

For more info visit “Old Farmer’s Almanac” and Time and Date.

September brings another full Supermoon

Some sky sites say September’s full moon appears on the 28th of the month. Others say look for it on the 29th. They are both right. The crest of the full moon is 4:57 a.m. CDT on Sept. 29. But you will see the full moon which is another of this year’s supermoons, at sunset on Sept. 28. I like EarthSky for this information.

Followers of Travel Smart know that full moons have different names. Some relate to the season’s weather or crops while others connect to Native American, Celtic and other cultures.

Not surprisingly, September 2023 is the Harvest Moon because it is the full moon closest to the fall equinox, Sept. 23. It is also called the corn moon.

Unless the weather interfers, it will be easy to see. Its larger than usual size and brightness has to do with its closeness to earth and not anything extra.

If you like finding planets in relations to the moon, look for Saturn an hour earlier. It will be moving through the sky ahead of the full moon. Jupiter will be tagging along after the moon.

Another good sky site to find more information is Time and Date.

August full moons not a typo

You likely heard the phrase, ‘once in a blue moon.’ It’s about rarity, not color. It’s when one month boasts two full moons. And August 2023 is a prime example.

First, watch for the first full moon, called the Sturgeon Moon, on Aug.1, Peak illumination is 2:32 p.m. Eastern Time, but you should be watching for it after sunset when it’s more visible as it rises in the east.

It is also a Supermoon. Because its orbit brings it close to earth it will appear larger and brighter.

As for its name, it refers to when the Great Lakes’ huge sturgeon are often caught. Menacing looking, it is the North America’s largest fish and is considered prehistoric (136 million years ago) in origin.

For a great Sturgeon exhibit, check out Grand Rapics, MI’s Public Musuem.

The August moon is also called the “Corn” moon by some Native American tribes and many farmers.

Then, look skyward at the end of the month for the second full moon. What we call a “Blue Moon” appears August 30 with peak illumination at 9:36 p.m. ET.

Its appearance late in the month begins the later cycle of monthly full moon dates.

One other full moon note is that the moon will appear full the day before peak illumination and the day after so expect more night lite and picture taking ops.

For more excellent full moon info visit The Old Farmer’s Almanac and Time and Date.

Early May sky show

May 5 is celebrated as a victorious battle day by Mexican communities in the United States. So if in Chicago find a couple of Cinco de Mayo restaurant deals at Dining Out Eating In.

But if wondering why there are “falling stars” overhead or why it’s so bright outside that night, check out the following information.

The Flower Moon

If the sky isn’t particularly cloudy where you live than the evening will seem brighter than usual May 4-6, 2023. May’s full Moon has total illumination in the afternoon of May 5 at 1:36 p.m. EDT but will appear full in the evening of May 4-6. The clue to the name of the May full Moon surrounds us almost everywhere there is a plot of earth.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac has the time the moon will be rising above the horizon and setting where you live.

As followers of Travel Smart know by now, the name of a month’s Moon (and yes, it often is referred to the whole month by the same name), often comes from Native American tribes, long ago European farmers and also religions and cultures that base some festivals on lunar events.

Thus the May Moon is called the Planting Moon, Budding Moon, Milk Moon and Egg Laying Moon. For more name info visit The Old Farmer’s Almanac and (timeanddate.com).

Meteors

May 5-6 is also when to watch for the Eta Aquarids, a meteor shower that typically sends about 50 meteors an hour across the sky. Their parent is 1pHalley which produces two meteor showers during the year.

The May shower is named for a bright star in constellation Eta Aquarli and is the first meteor shower from Comet Halley debris.

Earth passes through Halley’s path around the Sun again in October when its debris is known as the Orionid meteor shower that peaks around October 20.

Sky watch meteors and full moon

New Year’s Eve fireworks kept sky watchers engrossed as TV stations moved across the world to different time zones and countries Dec. 31, 2022.

Then nature followed with the Quadrantids meteors. Begun Dec. 28, it peaks pre-dawn Jan. 3 to Jan 4 in 2023. Their “parent” is the Asteroid 2003 EH from the defunct constellation Quadrans Mualis.

They seem to radiate from a point east of Ursa Minor (The Little Dipper) but can be seen anywhere in a clear sky. The problem will be the moon which will be waxing gibbous on its way to full illumination Jan. 6.

For best time to watch and where in your region check TimeandDate Quadrantids.

Next looking up, is a Mircromoon. Called the Wolf Moon, January’s full moon is considered a Micromoon because it appears smaller due to its orbit which takes it far from Earth (as opposed to a Supermoon which appears large because it is close to Earth).

The January 2023 full moon reaches full illumination at 5 p.m. CST Jan. 6, but will appear full the day before and day after. Some Native Tribes have called it the Wolf Moon because wolves tend to howl more in January.

Read more about the January moon’s names in The Old Farmer’s Almanac.

April full moon Pink in name only

April's Full Moon is the Pink Moon ( J Jacobs photo) — April’s Full Moon is the Pink Moon ( J Jacobs photo)

Start seeing what looks like a full moon on Friday. Full moons tend to look full just before their date and the day afterwards.

In 2022, April’s full moon reaches total illumination at 1:55 p.m. EDT on Saturday the 16^th and will continue to appear full on Sunday. It is not a SuperMoon. The moon will appear to be larger the morning of April 19 when it will be at its perigee (closest to Earth) at 11:14 EDT.

Known as the Pink Moon, the April full moon derives its name from the season when pink creeping (moss) phlox bloom and not from an atmospheric moon color.

As with other full moon names, it echoes what is happening in nature so other names range from Breaking Ice Moon to Awakening Moon.

March’s full moon, which fell before the Spring Equinox was called the Worm Moon when worms emerge in early Spring.

But the March and April Full Moons can be the Paschal Moon depending on when the full moon falls: before or after the Spring Equinox.

The Paschal Moon is often used to determine the Easter date. So, the moon in March or April can be called the Paschal Moon. Visit the Old Farmer’s Almanac for more information on the Spring Equinox and April Full Moon. Also see Time and Date on How Easter is Determined.

The April full moon is also the Pesach Moon for the Jewish feast of Passover which begins at sundown April 15 and is celebrated with Seders on the first two evenings. Paschal is a Latinized word for Pesach.

For more Full Moon info visit NASA Solar System Exploration.

Does January full moon mark middle of winter

January full moon is the Wolf Moon J Jacobs photo)

If you like taking photos of a full moon, get those cameras or cell phones ready Jan. 16 through Jan.18 to snap the first full moon of 2022.

Even though the moon at its fullest illumination Jan. 17 at 23.48 UTC (5:48 p.m. CST), it will appear full the day before and day after Jan. 17.

A newscaster mentioned that Jan. 17-18 marks a halfway point for winter. Well, that depends.

Meteorological winter started Dec. 1 and continues through the end of February because the meteorological seasons are divided into quarters of three months each. In the Northern Hemisphere meteorological spring is March, April May.

A sky watching site mentioned that the last full moon was Dec. 19, 2021, two days before the Northern Hemisphere’s December solstice. For 2022, astronomical winter began December 21, 2021 and ends at the Equinox, March 20, 2022. Time and Date has a calendar.

The astronomical calendar is based on the Earth’s rotation around the sun with seasons divided by two solstices and two equinoxes, determined by a combination of Earth’s tilt and the sun’s position over the equator.

Another feature of a full moon is its name. Folklore, typically based on animal behavior and crop cycles, calls the January full moon the Snow Moon, Hunger Moon and, most popularly, the Wolf Moon.

Animal behavior is also behind Groundhog Day. Just for fun, on Feb. 2, check out groundhog predictions of winter’s end from Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania and Woodstock Willie in Woodstock, IL (where “Groundhog Day” was filmed).

For more information visit NASA Solar System Exploration and Time and Date.

December full moon heralds winter

Don’t be surprised if a bright light wakes you this weekend. The December full moon rises very high in the sky opposite the sun at 10:36 p.m. CST Dec. 18, 2021. But the shining orb looks full and bright Friday through Monday.

In the eastern part of the northern hemisphere the high moon hour is close enough to midnight to be considered a Sunday full moon. Click Moonrise Calculator for time in your area. You can watch for the full moon just before sunset.

The December full moon has several nicknames such as the Long Night Moon and Full Cold Moon because it comes closest to the Winter Solstice (Dec. 21,2021). It marks the start of winter and is the date with the longest period of darkness. The December full moon also has a very high trajectory so it will be in the sky longer.

Other names are the Yule Moon, Winter Moon, Frost Moon and Oak Moon.

Find good source information at EarthSky, NASA Solar System Exploration, TimeandDate and Old Farmer’s Almanac.

Harvest Moon says fall is here

Full Moon in September is the Harvest Moon. ( J Jacobs photo)

You might not have heard of the Sturgeon Moon in August or the Buck Moon in July but chances are you’ve heard of the Harvest Moon that is appearing overhead now in September.

It’s more than just a popular song.

Harvest Moon is the name some cultures, native tribes and farmers have given to the full moon that usually appears mid to late September because it rises when the sun goes down thus giving famers more light to get the crops in.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the Harvest Moon is the full moon closest to the September autumnal equinox. In 2021 that comes Sept. 22 when day and night are about equal in length. (It comes in March in the Southern Hemisphere)

You probably noticed that large golden orb already appearing above the horizon. It will be fullest and brightest Sept. 20, about 6:45 p.m. CDT. but will also appear full the following day.

If listening to TV weather reports, you are likely to hear meteorologists referencing the date as the beginning of autumnal fall but adding that meteorological fall began about 3 weeks before the September equinox on Sept. 1.

Autumnal fall ends at the December Solstice, when astronomical winter begins. but for meteorologists the fall season ends Nov. 30.

Check Time and Date for more more equinox information and go to the Old Farmer’s Almanac for more full moon facts and folklore.