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September 2026 Full Harvest Moon: Date, Meaning, and How to Watch

Full Harvest Moon September Full Moon OFA
Image Credit:
Colleen Quinnell/The Old Farmer's Almanac
Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Mark your calendars! The September 2026 Full Harvest Moon peaks on Saturday, September 26, at 12:49 P.M. Eastern Time. Rising low on the horizon, it will appear bigger, brighter, and more golden than any other Moon this year, casting long light across autumn fields and evening skies.

When to See the Full Harvest Moon in September 2026

This year, September’s Full Harvest Moon will peak in illumination at 12:49 P.M. Eastern Time on Saturday, September 26. It will be below the horizon at this time, so be sure to watch for it after sunset… it will be hard to miss!

Why the Harvest Moon Is Different From Other Full Moons

The Harvest Moon is the Full Moon closest to the autumnal equinox (September 22 or 23). Unlike other Full Moons, it rises about the same time for several nights, providing extended evening light. Historically, this extra illumination helped farmers complete their harvests before fall frosts.

Read more about the Harvest Moon!

Best Times and Locations to View the Harvest Moon

  • Horizon viewing: The Moon appears largest when rising or setting.
  • Open landscapes: Fields, parks, or waterfronts add scale and drama.
  • Local timing: Peak illumination is at 12:49 P.M. EDT, but it is visible for several evenings before and after.

September 2026 Full Harvest Moon rising low in the sky with an airplane crossing in front

Is the September 2026 Full Moon a Harvest Moon or Corn Moon?

In 2026, the September Full Moon is a Harvest Moon.

Occasionally, the Full Moon closest to the equinox is actually the October Moon. When this happens, the October Moon is designated as the Harvest Moon, and the September Full Moon is named the Corn Moon.

This is because this time of year—late summer into early fall—corresponds with the time of harvesting corn in much of the northern United States. For this reason, a number of Native American peoples traditionally used some variation of the name “Corn Moon” to refer to the Moon of either August or September. Examples include Corn Maker Moon (Western Abenaki) and Corn Harvest Moon (Dakota). 

Alternative September Moon Names

Other Moon names for this month highlight how September is the transitional period between summer and fall:

  • Autumn Moon (Cree)
  • Falling Leaves Moon (Ojibwe)
  • Leaves Turning Moon (Anishinaabe)
  • Moon of Brown Leaves (Lakota)
  • Yellow Leaf Moon (Assiniboine)

The behavior of animals is also a common theme, with Child Moon (Tlingit) referring to the time when young animals are weaned, and Mating Moon and Rutting Moon (both Cree) describing the time of year when certain animals, like moose, elk, and deer, are looking to mate.

→ Read more about Full Moon names and their traditional meanings here.

Moon Phases for September 2026

september moon phases including the full harvest moon

Here are the Moon phase dates and times (EDT) for the month of September. Check our Moon Phase Calendar for dates and times in your city.

Moon Phases for September 2026
Last QuarterLast Quarter: September 4, 3:51 A.M. EDT
New MoonNew Moon: September 10, 11:27 P.M. EDT
First Quarter: September 18, 4:44 P.M. EDT
Full Moon: September 26, 12:49 P.M. EDT

When is the next Full Moon? Consult our Full Moon Calendar to find out.

September Full Moon Video

Why does the Moon ride high or low in the sky? Find out the answer to this question—and learn more about September’s Full Moon—in this entertaining video.


 

Best Days in September 2026

Below are the best days for activities, based on the Moon’s sign and phase in September.

ActivityBest Days
Harvesting aboveground crops14, 15
Harvesting belowground crops5, 6
Setting Eggs3, 4, 20-22, 30
Fishing10-26

→ See Best Days for more activities.

harvest-moon-oil-painting-2-e1471695114941.jpg

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is it called the Harvest Moon?

The Harvest Moon is the Full Moon that occurs closest to the autumnal equinox. It rises shortly after sunset for several nights in a row, providing extra evening light that once helped farmers gather crops before the first frost.

Will the Harvest Moon look bigger than usual?

Yes. Because it rises low on the horizon, the Harvest Moon often appears larger and more golden due to the Moon illusion, especially just after moonrise.

Is the September 2026 Full Moon a supermoon?

No, the September 2026 Harvest Moon is not classified as a supermoon, but it can still appear impressively large and bright when viewed near the horizon.

Why does the Harvest Moon rise earlier than other Full Moons?

Around the autumnal equinox, the Moon’s path across the sky is at a shallow angle, causing it to rise only about 30 minutes later each night, instead of the usual 50 minutes.

Are you a Full Moon lover? Share your thoughts below!

Full Moon Names

About The Author

Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann is the Executive Digital Editor of Almanac.com, the digital home of The Old Farmer’s Almanac. She leads digital editorial strategy and publishing across a wide range of Almanac sub...

Read more from Catherine Boeckmann

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Comments

<span>Moongazer</span> Wed, 09/11/2019 - 13:09
Feel so lucky to live in the gorgeous Catalina Mountains in Oro Valley AZ. The moon coming up over these mountains is beyond breathtaking. I can't stop watching, want to sit all nite taking in such a glorious sight. So still, so erie, so peaceful, and always amazed at the brightness of the full moon and the shadows it creates. It is beautiful and bittersweet at the same time. I always think how nature will in the end endure, despite all the havoc we are wreaking to our planet.
<span>Mr D</span> Mon, 09/09/2019 - 13:53
Not sure how or why this is but when it is a full moon or close to it I always feel a lot happier, optimistic, positive, refreshed etc. Full moons do for whatever reason improve my mental state. Don't know why. I'm sure it has to do with something
<span>Nancy Marrison</span> Tue, 09/06/2022 - 06:51
The full moons always make me happy too. I love the Native Americans names for the moons!! So suiting. I love the fall moons most of all!!!
<span>J Gregory</span> Sat, 09/10/2022 - 01:56
It had to have been a wonderful time back then, when there were no headlights or flashlights, floodlights or streetlights. The only lights were the moon and the stars, and fires if you made one. People must have just marveled at the night skies, and they did, to the point of being able to tell there was something different about some of the illuminated objects. How many nights observing the planet Venus (they had no idea that it was a planet, but they figured out that it was the same object every night, and paddled out to an island to view it when it was very low in the sky) how many generations of Mayans, watching the night sky, did it take for them to create their calendar. Places like Stonehenge and other prehistoric monoliths were all created based on the sun and moon and stars. The darkness put people together (for safety), the stories of the night skies brought and kept them together, all these artificial lights allowed them to wander apart. Google "pale blue dot" sometime, to see what life-forms "out there" see of our planet. I was born on the Autumnal Equinox, 60 years ago this year, and up until tonight I have always heard the September full moon called the Full Barley Moon, never the Corn Moon. Didn't the native Americans call what Europeans called corn, maize? It doesn't really matter what anyone else wants to call it, it will always be the Full Barley moon to me.
<span>Doris Billingsley</span> Tue, 09/25/2018 - 00:28
One full moon was given a special name by slaves that was best for running away light. During the time when the Underground Railway was operating, they had to reach a known destination by moonlight. I can't remember what it was.
<span>Rosa</span> Sun, 08/07/2022 - 18:46
Maybe they called a full moon, Freedom Moon, but I found this info about the instructions given to them to keep the Drinking Gourd (Big Dipper) in sight when travelling on starlit nights. “Follow the Drinking Gourd” was a song used in the Underground Railroad to help give directions to the escaping slaves. The “drinking gourd” was the name for a hollow gourd that the slaves would use to collect water.
<span>Sandyfeet</span> Tue, 09/25/2018 - 12:26
I spend my summers in Michigan and not far from Detroit. One of the last "stops" to The Underground Railroad was the border of the US and Ontario, Canada, where they went for their freedom. While there was never significant Canadian trade in African slaves, native nations frequently enslaved their rivals and a very modest number were purchased by colonial administrators and/or rarely by settlers until 1833, when the British Parliament abolished slavery across the British Empire. There is an interesting tour in Detroit that takes you along the journey that the slaves undertook. Until Emancipation, Detroit was a pivotal part of the Underground Railroad, and in the 1800's, a network of abolitionists, or “conductors,” who aided enslaved people seeking freedom. That’s because the city, code-named “Midnight,” provided access to Canada just across the Detroit River. But to answer your question, the migration of slaves or The Underground Railroad did NOT use the light of the full moon, but instead relied on the stars and in particular the North Star. The slaves fleeing slavery were hunted by the light of the full moon..either by bloodhounds and "pattyrollers". But all the FULL MOON names inherited their colloquial names from the Native Americans or First Nation peoples, and NOT slaves or their plight.
<span>J Gregory</span> Sat, 09/10/2022 - 03:27
You are correct about rival tribes enslaving each other. What a lot of people don't realize is that this is how African slavery began and that it was warring tribes that started selling slaves, as opposed to killing them there, to English and Spanish traders, who brought them to America as early as 1510, with the settling of St Augustine, Florida. They delivered slaves and other traded good to places that were settled by people of their respective "home countries". There were no "Americans" (citizens of the United States of America) until after the Declaration of Independence, ca 1776. The Emancipation Proclamation , delivered by Abraham Lincoln, January 1, 1863 freed the slaves. That is a span of 87 years. I guess what I don't understand is how Americans get blamed for 400 years of slavery when warring tribes and English and Spanish traders delivering to their emigrant peoples were much more involved, much earlier than any "Americans". The indigenous people of this continent are the ones who suffered the greatest injustice, they were run off their lands, they were tortured by the Conquistadors in their lustful search for gold, they were granted US government treaties and had those treaties broken so many times its disgusting, they were given blankets infected with small pox, as an alternative to freezing to death, they were labeled and murdered as savages AND they were enslaved (the "lucky" ones). Yet, you don't hear them shouting "racism", you don't see them rioting, burning and destroying property or attacking law enforcement officers. Why is that? Have they been beaten down so far that they don't realize that they could, or do they remember what happened to their ancestors and have "settled" for what little they've got. Their plight is where at least SOME attention should be focused, and sadly it isn't. Isn't it about time everyone stops complaining about how terrible we can be to each other and start figuring out how to accept each other and work together creating a world where we all can live? Quick, before it's all destroyed and there's nowhere for anyone to live.
<span>Kathy</span> Fri, 09/21/2018 - 23:29
Does anyone know a good location where people go to view the moon . Where u can sit in ur pickup truck and relax while you watch the moon with your date ? Near los angeles CA .
<span>Diana M</span> Mon, 06/24/2019 - 00:12
Being a moon "lunatic" and with the name Diana (goddess of the moon) I seek high ground when looking for the best (and earliest) moon view, when it appears the largest. Around our neighborhood there are lots of tall trees and some tall buildings that lock me out from viewing until the moon has been up for quite awhile. So I drive up into the hills where I can get an unobstructed view and am as far away from ambient light as possible. With the quiet around me and very little surrounding light I can really bask in the moonview for a long period of time. I recommend it for all you "loonies" out there!