September’s full “harvest” moon which is also a supermoon will peak Tuesday night at 9:35 local time according to NASA.
The moon will appear full for about three days, from Monday night through Thursday morning.
In addition, tomorrow night there will be a partial lunar eclipse which will add to the skywatching fun.
The harvest moon is the full moon that occurs closest to the autumnal equinox, which this year is Sept. 22.
The harvest moon’s name has long been tied to when crops need to be picked from the fields.
The Oxford English Dictionary cites 1706 as the first year the term “harvest moon” was used.
It’s also a ‘supermoon’ which happens when the moon’s orbit brings it closer to Earth than usual. The moon can appear slightly bigger and brighter than normal.
NASA says on average, supermoons appear about 7% bigger and about 15% brighter than a typical full moon.
This is the second of four straight supermoons: After Sept. 17, the next supermoons are Oct. 17 and Nov. 15.
And if that wasn’t enough, September’s full moon also brings a partial lunar eclipse. That occurs when the Earth’s shadow falls on the moon, either dimming it or turning it red over a few hours.
NASA says tomorrow’s partial lunar eclipse will result from an imperfect alignment of the sun, moon, and Earth, so only part of the moon will be covered by the Earth’s shadow.
The moment of greatest eclipse Tuesday night will be at 9:44 local time. At that moment, the top 8 percent of the moon will be in full shadow.
The next total lunar eclipse visible from the Americas will be on March 14.
