JACKSON, Wyo. — “There’s a full moon rising, let’s go dancing in the light…” The full moon Neil Young made famous in 1992 is rising over Jackson tonight.
According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, October’s moon will reach peak fullness at 9:47 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 6. It will also be a supermoon, the phenomenon of a new or full moon occurring within 90% of the moon’s closest approach to the Earth along its elliptical orbit, according to NASA.
“This evening, the moon could appear to be about 30% brighter and up to 14% larger than a typical full moon,” NASA’s skywatching blog states.
The National Weather Service is forecasting mostly clear skies over Jackson tonight, so moon viewing conditions could be excellent.
Skywatchers will have noticed that the waxing moon has been creating bright moonlight early in the evening for the past few days. This “extra light” aided farmers during their fall harvest, which is why it’s called the Harvest Moon.
Unlike other full moon names, the Harvest Moon is not associated with a specific month. The full moon closest to the autumnal equinox, which fell on Sept. 22 this year, is the Harvest Moon. Depending on the moon cycle, the Harvest Moon can be in either September or October. The Hunter’s Moon is the full moon that follows the Harvest Moon, so it can be in either October or November.
The almanac notes that Native Americans have been naming the moons for centuries. The moon names for October used by many tribes reference the changes experienced during the fall season.
According to Western Washington University, Newe (Shoshone) called October’s moon “naa-mea’” meaning, rutting. The Indé (Apache) called it “the time when the corn is taken,” the Hinanaeina (Arapaho) called it the “falling leaves moon,” and the Nakodabi (Assiniboine) called it “anukope” moon, which means “joins both sides.”
The Tsis tsis’tas (Cheyenne) called it the “freeze begins on stream’s edge moon” and the Nermernuh (Comanche) called it the “yuba mua,” meaning fall moon. The Nêhiyawak (Cree) called it the “opinahamowipizun,” which means “moon the birds fly south.” The Kaigini (Haida) which occupied what is now Alaska called October’s moon, “cha’áaw kungáay,” which means “bears hibernate moon.”
For those hunting this weekend, the basic rule of thumb for the moon phase is the brighter the night, the less daytime activity from elk.
