This week, I chose the picture called Equinox and the Harvest Moon, uploaded on September 24, 2010. It is a very interesting picture of a special kind of full moon that occurred on September 22, 2010. It looks like it was a partially cloudy night, and it appears that the moon was in a direction opposite the sun. The setting is above a church in Hungary, and Jupiter can be seen shining opposite the sun as well.
This particular full moon is closest to the autumnal equinox, and this usually happens towards the beginning of fall. When this occurs, it it called a Harvest Moon, another name for a full moon nearest the autumnal equinox.In the U.S., September 22nd and September 23rd are the best dates for viewing this in the sky. For this year, the northern hemisphere autumnal equinox occurred on September 23rd. Only six hours after the equinox, the moon appeared in full phase. It is not bigger or brighter than the moon on regular nights. The full moon near the autumnal equinox causes a narrow angle on the ecliptic. As a result, there are shorter rising times between the successive moons. The moon will rise opposite the sun, illuminating fields at harvest time during sunset.
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