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The harvest full moon will rise tonight at 03:05 PM (EDT)
STATES CHRONICLE – Tonight, September 16, 2016, the last harvest full moon of the year will rise. The view will be completed by a subtle eclipse that will be enjoyed by sky gazers from Asia, Australia, and Africa.
Tonight’s Harvest Full Moon will be officially full when it reaches the position in the sky opposite to that of the sun. The event tonight will take place at 03:05 PM (EDT) when the moon will shine the brightest.
Those living in the Western Pacific, Asia, Africa, Australia, and Europe will be able to notice a minor penumbral eclipse that will accompany the Harvest Full Moon. In the case of a cloudy sky, Space.com will feature a live webcast of the phenomenon.
Tonight’s full moon is the closest event to the autumnal equinox. This year it will take place in September, but it does occur in October from time to time.
The earliest recorded harvest full moon was on September 8th, 2014 and the latest was on October 7th, 1987.
The popular belief surrounding the event is that the harvest full moon lingers in the sky longer than any other full moon. However, this is just a myth. A genuine individuality of the harvest moon is given by the fact that it always occurs during the harvest season climax thus allowing farmers to work longer.
The full moon rises just as the sun sets, so it provides plenty of light for harvesting. Usually, it takes the moon an average of 50 minutes to replace the sun in the sky.
Apart from the showers of light that the harvest moon will offer, some lucky few will be able to observe a penumbral eclipse. The phenomenon is made possible by the passing of the satellite through the outer fringe created by Earth’s shadow.
Unlike the instances in which Earth’s umbral shadow causes the moon to look like a portion of it was bitten, this time, the penumbral shadow will only cause the satellite to display a smudgy, tarnished look when it is at its maximum’s point.
Unfortunately, the event will not be visible in North America.
How will you profit from the extra light offered by tonight’s harvest full moon?
Image source: Pexels
