Summer 2023 has been a fun summer for Full Moon fans. Since July, we’ve seen four consecutive supermoons, including a rare super blue moon in August, and this weekend, the final supermoon of the year, September’s Harvest Moon, is giving skywatchers the last chance of the season. It gave me the thrill of the moon.
When the Moon is at or near perigee (the closest point in its orbit to Earth), it can appear as much as 30% brighter and 14% larger in the sky, but casual full moon observers typically can’t spot it. is difficult. When this happens, it is called a supermoon.
September’s full moon on September 29th, also known as the Harvest Moon, reflecting the start of the Northern Hemisphere’s harvest season, was the fourth in a series of supermoons that began in July (8 ).This is an especially lucky year for supermoon lovers, who will wait a year before it rises again. The next supermoon won’t occur until the Harvest Moon in September 2024.
To photograph the event for Space.com, I headed to the rooftop of a downtown parking lot. This was the perfect spot to view the moon through the metal scaffolding on the adjacent roof in Bloomington, Indiana. But perhaps a more breathtaking view emerged from the bridge over Lake Monroe in Bloomington later that evening. The rising moon Friday night graced the water with its reflections, sending sparkling ripples as nearby boats headed into the harbor for the night’s docking.
Full Moon Guide for September 2023: Super Harvest Moon joins Jupiter and Saturn
The differences in the size of supermoons aren’t always obvious to those who view the moon occasionally, but keen observers, especially those looking through binoculars or a telescope, can see the difference.
This week’s full moon reached its peak on Friday, September 29th at 5:57 a.m. EDT (9:57 GMT), according to . In the skyAnd when it rose again on Friday, it remained incredibly full and bright throughout the night and into Saturday morning.
As the Harvest Supermoon moved across the September sky, photographers around the world took advantage of the added lighting to capture stunning photos in preparation for the final supermoon of 2023.
“Using two telescopes, we captured highly detailed shots of the full moon at the moment the clouds cleared,” says astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy. I wrote to X, formerly known as Twitter, After the Full Moon. “I live for this moment.”
I used two telescopes to get very detailed shots of the full moon as the clouds parted. I live for this moment. pic.twitter.com/QPzrpQIuvPSeptember 29, 2023
In Germany, visitors to Munich’s annual Oktoberfest festival take in spectacular views of the harvest moon while riding a merry-go-round, as captured by AFP photographer Christoph Stache for Getty Images. Photographed.
Sometimes more earthly sights can amplify the view of a full moon. Matt Lantz captured this stunning view of the harvest moon setting behind mesquite trees in Parker County, Texas, early Friday morning.
The 2023 Harvest Supermoon sets behind mesquite trees in Parker County, Texas this morning. #ParkerCounty #Texas #moon #fullmoon #supermoon #harvestmoon #dfwwx #txwx pic.twitter.com/5blAaJVS5ESeptember 29, 2023
Patience is always key in astrophotography, and it’s on full display in this stunning composition of 14 different images of the Harvest Moon rising over Carassio, Italy. Photographer Lorenzo Di Cola of NurPhoto for Getty Images captured the images and compiled them into his single mosaic showing the moon rising in stages.
Di Cola had a beautiful backdrop perfect for viewing the harvest moon. In addition to the mosaic images, he also captured a wonderful view of the full moon rising behind the Rocca Carassio castle and the church of Santa Maria della Pieta in Carassio.
A full moon can brighten the night sky. But skywatcher Olly Griffin combined that nightlight with a type of human-made light to capture a stunning view of the Harvest Moon shining over Poolberg Lighthouse in Dublin, Ireland.
#HarvestMoon briefly appeared through the clouds at the iconic Poolbeg Lighthouse… #StormHour @AstronomyIRL #KeepDiscovering @VisitDublin pic.twitter.com/Kwj2dqCenCSeptember 30, 2023
If you’re looking to see the Harvest Moon, our guide to the best telescopes and binoculars is a great place to start.
If you want to photograph the night sky in general, check out our guide on how to photograph meteor showers, as well as the best cameras for astrophotography and the best lenses for astrophotography.
Editor’s note: If you have captured images of the Harvest Moon and would like to share them with Space.com readers, please send your photo, comment, name and location to: spacephotos@space.com.