Breathtaking Views As Famous ‘Harvest Moon’ Wows Moon-Gazers Across The World

Did you see the “Harvest Moon?”

Once of the most iconic full Moons of the calendar year, September’s Harvest Moon was best seen at moonrise on the evening of Saturday, September 10, 2022.

For some of the appearance of a gorgeous orangey orb in the east in dusk was tinged with sadness coming just days after the second delay in a week to NASA’s Artemis I mission to the Moon. This delay could be a long one.

A full Moon is the phase of our natural satellite in space when it is fully illuminated by the Sun from our point of view on Earth. The last full Moon of the northern hemisphere’s summer season, the Harvest Moon rose in the east just after sunset, shone brightly all night and set in the west close to sunrise.

The Harvest Moon is one of the most well-known full Moons of the entire year, perhaps because its name is used across the northern hemisphere where crops are being harvested at this time of year.

The Harvest Moon is always the closest full Moon to the fall equinox, which will occur at 01:04 UTC on September 23, 2022. It marks the point when the midday Sun is directly above the equator, giving every location on the planet 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness.

What was unique about this weekend’s Harvest Moon was that it shone just under 3° from Neptune, allowing those with binoculars to try for a glimpse of the eighth planet from the Sun.

Tonight—Sunday, September 11, 2022—look to east an hour after sunset tonight see a by now 96%-lit waning gibbous Moon about 4º below a very bright planet Jupiter. The giant planet will reach its annual “opposition” in a few weeks, which is when it will shine at its brightest of the year.

Although the Moon waxes and wanes in brightness, it’s always orange as its rises and sets. That’s down to “Raleigh scattering.” Long wavelength red light travels more easily through Earth’s atmosphere than short-wavelength blue light, which strikes more particles and gets scattered.

So a rising full Moon look orange because you’re viewing it through a lot of atmosphere—for the same reason a setting Sun looks reddish.

The next full Moon is the “Hunter’s Moon” on Sunday, October 9, 2022. After that it’s the “Beaver Moon” on Monday, November 8, 2022. That full Moon will drift into Earth’s shadow in space causing a total lunar eclipse. The full Moon will consequently turn a reddish color for 84 minutes.

You don’t need any special equipment to see a full Moon—your own unaided eyes are perfect. However, if you do have a a pair of binoculars then get them ready for a stunning close-up. You’ll see it more easily if you get somewhere high-up, or on a beach with a clear view of the horizon.

Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.