Rare Harvest Moon Is Rising This Upcoming Friday The 13th, Will Be Visible Across The Nation

Sep 10, 2019

Although Fall hasn’t officially started, things are already starting to get a bit spooky. This coming Friday the 13th a Harvest Moon will appear across the U.S. and into the morning hours of September 14th. The full moon seems like the perfect way to ring in the new season. Here’s how to catch a glimpse of it:

So what is a Harvest Moon? According to The Old Farmer’s Almanac, “The Harvest Moon isn’t like the other Moons. Usually, throughout the year, the Moon rises an average of about 50 minutes later each day. But near the autumnal equinox, the difference is only 30 minutes.” Meaning the full Harvest Moon will rise around sunset for several nights consecutively. So it may seem like there are full moons for a couple of days straight.

What’s even more rare about this Harvest Moon is that it falls on Friday the 13th — an already eerie date. Newsweek reports that this type of occurrence won’t happen again for another 30 years on August 13th, 2049.

The reason this moon is called the Harvest Moon is because it was especially helpful for farmers who were harvesting their summer crops. Since the moon rises soon after sunset the moonlight is more bright which helped the farmers see during the night time according to the Farmer’s Almanac.

So how can you watch this rare and spectacular moon? For those living in the Eastern Time Zone, the moon will be visible at 12:33 a.m. on Saturday, September 14, while Americans in the Pacific, Central, Mountain and Alaskan time zones will be able to see the full moon on Friday the 13th according to Farmers’ Almanac. 

Will you catching a glimpse of this rare moon? Tell us below. Send this article to your friends and family so they can know to look out for the moon!