If you’ve been scanning the internet over the past few days, you’ve likely seen something about a “Rare Friday the 13th Harvest Micromoon.”
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This is sort-of-true, so let me explain.
The Harvest Moon is the full moon that occurs closest to the autumnal equinox. Folklore says the name was given to this moon because it’s the time of year when the moon rises around sunset.
On a clear night, the moonlight would provide additional brightness to the sky into the early evening, allowing farmers to stay in their fields longer to harvest crops.
This year, the Harvest Moon also will be considered a “micromoon” because it takes place when the moon is at the furthest point from Earth in its orbit. It may appear smaller and not as bright.
>> Full harvest moon will bring spooky sight to the skies on Friday the 13th
Getting back to this rare Friday the 13th Harvest Micromoon, technically in the Eastern Time Zone the moon will not become full until 12:32 a.m. Saturday. For everyone else, the full moon will appear Friday in the Central, Mountain and Pacific time zones.
The last time a full moon appeared on Friday the 13th was Oct. 13, 2000. It won’t happen again until Aug. 13, 2049.
