The Full Sturgeon Moon rises! This year also brings a partial lunar eclipse! See the live show here! And learn more about the full Moon for August 2017—including best days by the Moon, full Moon names, and more.
Partial Lunar Eclipse Show (Free!)
Monday August 7: 11:45 AM EDT
Join Slooh as we watch the partial lunar eclipse that is leading up to the Total Solar Eclipse! We will be watching the shadow pass over the moon from partner feeds all over the world!
Watch below at 11:45 AM EDT. This show is free on Almanac.com, courtesy of Slooh!
While the partial eclipse will only be visible in most of the Eastern Hemisphere, Slooh is here to help bring this celestial event directly to you, sharing live feeds from multiple sites across the world as well as special guests discussing this unique occurrence. We’ll also being talking about the incredible event following only weeks later—the transcontinental solar eclipse.
Reliant on a near-perfect alignment of the Earth, Moon, and Sun, a partial lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth moves between these two heavenly bodies. However, the three do not perfectly align, leaving a small area of the Moon’s surface covered by the dark, central part of Earth’s shadow—the umbra. The rest of the moon is covered by the outer part of Earth’s shadow—the penumbra. Direct sunlight is blocked from reaching the Moon, but some light is refracted and scattered forward through our atmosphere and onto the Moon’s surface. Red light scatters least, so the Moon often takes on a striking dull red or copper color during a lunar eclipse, giving rise to the ominous nickname for an eclipse’s appearance, a “blood moon”.
Love looking into outer space? As of this week, Slooh will open up its live telescope feeds to the worldwide public for free. See Slooh’s Web site!
Moon Phases for August 2017
All dates and times are ET. See the Moon Phase Calendar for your city/state.
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Full Moon: August 7, 2:11 P.M. |
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Last Quarter: August 14, 9:15 P.M. |
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New Moon: August 21, 2:30 P.M. |
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First Quarter: August 29, 4:13 A.M. |
For your next full Moon, see our Full Moon Dates chart.
August Full Moon Names
Some Native American tribes called the August Moon the “Sturgeon Moon” because they knew that the sturgeon of the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain were most readily caught during this Full Moon. They also called August’s Moon the “Full Green Corn Moon.”
Different tribes had different Moon name preferences. Other examples for August are: “Wheat Cut Moon” (San Ildefonso, and San Juan), “Moon When All Things Ripen” (Dakotah Sioux), and ”Blueberry Moon” (Ojibwe).
See all Full Moon names and their meanings.
Full Sturgeon Moon Video
Each month, we will explain the traditional names of the Full Moon along with some fascinating facts. In this video, learn about the Full Sturgeon Moon. Click below to watch the video.
Find Your Next Full Moon!
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Our Full Moon Finder App will put a smile on your face. Find “next” Full Moon dates to help plan events, fishing and hunting trips, and more.
Each day, a large Moon image will show how much of its surface is lit—along with Moon folklore for the day and the name of each full Moon (e.g., Full Snow Moon, Full Strawberry Moon).
Click here to learn more about Full Moon Finder App!
Best Days in August 2017
Below are the Best Days for activities based on the Moon’s sign and phase in August.
For Cutting Hay:
- 11, 12
For Setting Eggs:
- 5–7, 15, 16
For Fishing:
- 1–7, 21–31
See Best Days for more activities.
Moon Folklore
- Clothes washed for the first time in the full Moon will not last long.
- If you glimpse the new Moon over your right shoulder, you will have good luck.
- To have a project prosper, start it during the new Moon.
- Babies born a day after the full Moon enjoy success and endurance.
Share your thoughts about this month’s moon below!
Top 10 Veggies.
Reader Comments
Leave a Comment
Thoughts
1. The FA has to be more mainstream and more people need to know about it. I am really enjoying all you have on these pages, which I found by accident!
2. The moon tonight (August 8, 2017) is just magnificent in Rockville, MD.
3. My Cairn Terrier and my Yorkies are out on the deck, looking up at the moon! Wonder what they know...
4. Thanks so much for all your planting/gardening/recipe/etc. ideas. Reminds me of being home, on the farm, in New Jersey, when I was a little girl. : )
Thanks again,
Gay
Amazing!
First time
Sturgeon full moon
Thank you for your never ending help with your almanac! I have enjoyed it's many uses for years!
Thank YOU!
Why, thank you, Alejandro! We appreciate your interest in The Old Farmer’s Almanac. Your kind words made our day. With all good wishes, your editors in Dublin, New Hampshire.
Its in bloom the moon
High in the sky at night a moon its in its full bloom , past the summer equinox to pick some things you have planted in your gardens the next day enjoy your fruits
an labours .
So glad to reconnect with the
So glad to reconnect with the Farmer's Almanaci
sturgeon moon
the moon info was so interesting and I learned a lot!
Full Moon Fever!
Thank u for keeping us all informed of the latest full moon. I trust the Farmer's Almanac, as I have seen the printed copies and even bought them, before. I can most definitely feel the energy surrounding the waxing of the full moon, but like the gentleman states in the comments below, the cycles of the moon are most affecting. I had an old Drama professor in college who would always schedule our plays/productions around the full moon's cycle. The weekend before the full moon was to was the fullest, he felt, had the best energy. To this day, I have kept that in mind. Thanks for enlightening us all on the various types of moons; ie: Strawberry, Blue, Sturgeon, etc. Enjoy, everyone!
Full Moon Fever!
Correction to previous: "was to wax, was the fullest, & had the best energy."
Thank you!
Thank you!
I love this Almanac! Keep up this work!
I must say, I am firing up, as the moon waxes and becomes full only to be more tired as it wanes! Is it me? Or do I react to my wife's women's cycle? It's great being here though, in the waxing! Great dreams! Full energy! But, what goes up, must come down!
"Blue moon of kentucky, keep
"Blue moon of kentucky, keep on shining
Shine on the one that's gone and left me blue..." -Bill Monroe
It is indeed a most beautiful
It is indeed a most beautiful moon tonight! So clear one can almost count its craters, mountains and vales! Some look at a wonder such as this and say it is a marvel of modern science to know such a thing, others say it is a wonder of nature that such a scene could happen. I looked at this beautiful moon tonight and thought, it is a wonder of the Logos, the work of the creating and sustaining hand of Jesus Christ! How marvelous is His mercy and grace, when with all that is wrong with mankind, the good Lord in His goodness continues to give us glimpses of the beauty of His glory and majesty!
Amen!! Thank you for the
Amen!! Thank you for the beautiful comment! All glory to God! "the moon shines full at His command, and all the stars obey"!! - Isaac Watts, 1715
Dance all night in the blue
Dance all night in the blue moonlight at http://dregstudiosart.blogspot...
i can always see the full
i can always see the full moon out my front door here in georgia and this one is so clear, wonderful!
In 2013, the August moon will
In 2013, the August moon will REALLY be a Blue Moon. That is, it will be the third full moon in the summer season which has four full moons in 2013. This is the original, correct definition of a Blue Moon. The definition about the second full moon in a month is a more recent simplified usage.
Most tropical years have 12
Most tropical years have 12 full Moons, three for each season. But occasionally it contains one extra Moon. This is the case next year with the four full Moons in summer. Thanks for pointing this out!
"In 2013, the August moon
"In 2013, the August moon will REALLY be a Blue Moon. That is, it will be the third full moon in the summer season which has four full moons in 2013. This is the original, correct definition of a Blue Moon. The definition about the second full moon in a month is a more recent simplified usage."
If each season normally has three full moons, why then, wouldn't the term 'blue moon' refer to the FOURTH full moon of the season, since it's the rarer one?
Neal Armstrong gives the
Neal Armstrong gives the Earth a wink, and good-bye, as his funeral is today, the day of the Full Blue Moon.
Wow, that is amazing! He
Wow, that is amazing! He could not have planned it better had he planned it himself. Of course, we know we cannot choose the date of our birth nor our death and we certainly cannot be assured of the date of our funeral. Things like this should make even the most stern of agnostics and atheist wonder if "somebody bigger than you and I" is not in control after all! Mr. Armstrong was a great American, a true frontiersman of the new frontier. May he rest in peace.
My 2012 OFA says this is
My 2012 OFA says this is called the Red Moon, NOT Blue Moon
What is a Red Moon?
Hi, Tim, Yes, the right-hand
Hi, Tim, Yes, the right-hand pages of The Old Farmer's Almanac list Native American or colonial names for the full Moon. It is our style to list an alternate name for the second full Moon in a month if one occurs. In this case, the Full Red Moon, which is an Algonquin name. The name Full Red Moon can look like a mistake when considering the term "Blue Moon," which is commonly defined as the second full Moon in a month, such as occurs this August. We could have labeled the full Moon on August 31 a Blue Moon, but this would not have been a Native American or colonial name, and we wanted to be consistent. (In future, we will keep this in mind as we select an alternate name!) --Your OFA editors
I think this moon is going to
I think this moon is going to be over at my house. I love the size of the moon. Its going to be at my house and it is very huge. I love the way it is and it is amazing. Looks like the moon is going to rise until 8:56
the moon at your house
can i come over to your house so I may see this moon you speak of?
From where,or what do these
From where,or what do these sayings derive, superstition ? ?
Derived names were based on
Derived names were based on the recurring trends in nature at or close to the full moon, As in Harvest moon is when the moon is full at the closest time to harvest season, hunter's moon was named from being closest to hunting season.