The January full moon is called – Moon After Yule, Wolf Moon, or Old Moon

The first full moon of this year is called the Wolf Moon The moon is closer to Earth and appears larger and brighter to us than at any other time during the year.

What is a full moon?

The full moon is a lunar phase occurring when the moon is on the opposite side of the earth from the sun and all three bodies are aligned in a straight line. It appears as an entire circle in the sky.

Full Moon as seen from the Earth

The only month that can occur without a full moon is February.

The world’s tidal ranges are at their maximum during the full moon when the sun, earth and moon are in line.

The full moon is given different names, depending on when it appears:

• January – Moon After Yule, Wolf Moon, or Old Moon
• February – Snow Moon or Hunger Moon
• March – Sap Moon, Crow Moon, Worm Moon or Lenten Moon
• April – Grass Moon, Frog Moon or Egg Moon
• May – Milk Moon or Planting Moon
• June – Rose Moon, Flower Moon, or Strawberry Moon
• July – Thunder Moon or Hay Moon
• August – Grain Moon or Green Corn Moon
• September – Fruit Moon or Harvest Moon
• October – Harvest Moon or Hunter’s Moon
• November – Hunter’s Moon, Frosty Moon, or Beaver Moon
• December – Moon Before Yule or Long Night Moon.

Blue Moon

The second full moon occurring within a calendar month is called a Blue Moon. The last was seen on 31 December 2009. Far from being a rare event this phenomenon occurs once every three years on average.

A few facts about the Moon

The moon is, on average, 238,855 miles (384,400 km) from Earth.

The moon’s orbit around Earth – which causes it to go through all its phases once every 29.5 days.

Links

Moon Calendar

Introduction to the phases of the Moon

Facts about the Moon

Links

Multifaith Calendar