OCALA, FL (352today.com) – The next full moon this Thursday night, Sept. 28, will look massive and golden in the sky: the harvest moon, which ushers in autumn.
The harvest moon is the full moon nearest to the autumnal equinox. According to NASA, the moon gets its name from agriculture. Before electricity, farmers working past sunset would rely on the moon’s light to harvest their crops, which would ripen around this time of year. The full moon makes it brighter, making this moon the perfect one for harvesting.
This year, it will be even brighter. Although opinions vary on how to define a supermoon, which just refers to times when a full moon comes closer to Earth than usual, most agree the 2023 harvest moon is the final supermoon of the year. That means the moon will look even bigger and brighter in the sky than usual.
The harvest moon will appear largest and brightest in the early morning hours of Friday, Sept. 29, according to data from retired NASA astrophysicist Fred Espanak: at 5:58 a.m., to be exact. However, it should appear brighter all night Thursday. Even though it won’t actually change in size, the optical “moon illusion” will also make it look larger compared to distant objects.