Full Moon Names

Full Moon Names 2020 List and Moon Name FAQs

Full Moon Names Explained FAQs

Full Moon Names Explained:

What’s a Super Moon?
A full moon when the moon is at within 90% of it’s closest approach to Earth (perigee), which means it appears bigger and brighter, is called a supermoon or perigee full moon.
What’s a Blood Moon?
The moon looks reddish because it’s passing through Earth’s shadow.
What is a Full Moon?
A full moon occurs when the Earth is between the Sun and the Moon.
What’s a New Moon?
A new moon occurs when the moon is between the Sun and the Earth.
What’s a Blue Moon?
A second full moon in a calendar month is called a blue moon. This happens occasionally because calendar months don’t exactly follow the lunar cycle.
How often is there a blue moon?
Without getting into the mathematics of blue moons there’s a blue moon once every few years. The next blue moon occurs on 31 October 2020.
What’s a Super Snow Moon?
A full moon in February is called a snow moon and it’s also super because the moon is at its closest point to earth.
What’s a Micromoon?
A full moon or new moon which occurs at apogee (when the Moon’s orbit close to its furtherest point from Earth) is called an apogee moon or micromoon.

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Moon Month	Full moon called	Reasons behind the full moon names	Alternative full moon names
January full moon	Wolf moon	So called because of the howling of hungry wolves by the Anglo-Saxons and native Americans.	Old moon, ice moon
February full moon	Snow moon	The weather in the northern hemisphere has typically been snowy in February.	Hunger moon, storm moon
March full moon	Worm moon	Because of the visible worm trails (earthworm casts) on freshly thawed ground reappear in March inviting the return of the robin.	Chaste moon, crust moon, death moon, sap moon (after Maple tree tapping)
April full moon	Pink moon	Native Americans named this after an early blooming pink wild flower.	Sprouting grass moon, fish moon
May full moon	Flower moon	After the blooming of flowers by many cultures.	Milk moon, corn planting moon, hare moon
June full moon	Strawberry moon / Rose moon	Strawberry harvesting in north America, rose moon in Europe.	Hot moon
July full moon	Buck moon	Native Americans noticed male deer shed and regrow their antlers during July.	Hay moon (after the harvest), thunder moon (after summer storms)
August full moon	Sturgeon moon	So called by north American fisherman due to the abundance during August.	Grain moon, green corn moon, grain moon, red moon
September full moon	Harvest moon	Bright moon which and rises early makes it easier for farmers to gather the crops into the evening.	Corn moon, barley moon
October full moon	Hunters moon	Bright moon in sky for a long term, perfect for hunting the now empty fields.	Dying grass moon, travel moon
November full moon	Beaver moon	Named after beaver dam-building activities or native Americans beaver trapping in November	frost moon
December full moon	Cold moon	It’s winter and it’s cold in the northern hemisphere.	Long night moon, oak moon

Fascinating Moon Facts… | All Humans Who Walked on the Moon?

Full moon names usually hit the headlines and go viral on social media when a combination of moon events occur together. Here’s some recent examples:

The first of 2 Supermoons in 2020 on 9 March 2020 will be a Full Worm Supermoon

A full moon in March is called a worm moon. On March 9 the moon is near to its closest approach to Earth so it’s also a supermoon.

The second of 2 Supermoons in 2020 on 7 April 2020 will be a Pink Supermoon

A full moon in April is called a pink moon. On 7th April the moon is near to its closest approach to Earth so it’s also called a supermoon.

March 20 2019 Full Worm Supermoon

There was a “full worm supermoon” which coincided with the Spring equinox for the first time in 19 years. It was the third and final supermoon of 2019. It was a supermoon because the moon was at its closest point to Earth so appeared brighter and larger than normal and it was a worm moon because it’s the March full moon.

January 2019 Super Blood Wolf Moon

January 2019 a “super blood wolf moon” was visible across the northern hemisphere. It was a super moon because the moon was close to Earth, a blood moon because the moon was in the shadow of the earth and a wolf moon because that’s a popular name for the January full moon.

2 Blue Moons in 2018!

January AND March 2018 each had two blue moons (the second full moon in a month) with no full moon in February 2018, which is very unusual.

Rare Lunar Tetrad Blood Red Moon 2014

In April 2014 a “blood red moon” was especially notable because it was part of a “lunar tetrad” which means four successive total lunar eclipses, with no partial eclipses in between, each separated by six full moons (six lunar months).

Now Test Yourself with ADDucation’s Free Online Moon Quiz…

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Compiled by Joe Connor, last updated 11 Jan 2020.
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