Posted by Larry Hoover on September 28, 2007, at 22:13:56
In reply to What Is A Harvest Moon????, posted by Phillipa on September 27, 2007, at 16:36:27
> I've often wondered what a Harvest Moon is? Anyone know what it is is it just a full moon during the fall? Phillipa
A harvest moon is the full moon closest to the autumnal equinox. Because a full moon is directly opposite the sun, it rises just as the sun sets. What makes the harvest moon rather unique, however, is the interaction between the various orbits that coincide at the fall equinox; the net effect is to hold the full moon just above the horizon for an extended period, maximizing its illumination. It really does extend the day to allow extra harvesting to occur.....well, before we had electric lights, anyway.
The orange colour is an effect of remaining so near the horizon, where diffractive scattering of the blue light from the moonlight is maximized. Kind of like a sunset, only with moonlight.
The hunter's moon is the next full moon, and it also has a somewhat extended, although lesser,
delayed rising.Lar
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:785548
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20070925/msgs/785829.html