Tonight is the Harvest Moon, but why do we call it that?
October’s full moon occurs tonight, and it's also the full moon closest to the Autumnal Equinox, or first day of fall.
Every year, the full moon closest to the first day of fall is commonly referred to as the Harvest Moon in the Northern Hemisphere.
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That means the Harvest Moon can occur in either September or October, depending on how the moon's cycle lines up with the Equinox.
The Harvest Moon likely got its unique name because the full moon at the end of the growing season would help farmers work later into the night thanks to the light of the moon.
A complete moon cycle is about 29.5 days, which adds up to roughly one full moon a month. When two full moons happen in a single month, the second full moon is called a Blue Moon.
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