Ever noticed that Halloween pictures always show a full Moon? Well, this year, October 31 brings a Halloween Blue Moon! How rare is a full Moon on Halloween? Let’s learn more about the mythical Moon on this rather mystical night!
A Halloween Blue Moon in October 2020
The next Halloween full Moon occurs this year! We’ll see two full Moons this October: the first occurs on Thursday, October 1, and the second occurs on Saturday, October 31. Halloween’s full Moon will be extra special, since it will be the second of the month and, therefore, a “Blue Moon.”
October’s first full Moon will be called the Harvest Moon, while the second will be the Hunter’s Moon. If you prefer a more creative name, you could call this special full Moon the “Hunter’s Blue Moon on Halloween.”
Learn about October’s full Moons: The Harvest Moon and Full Hunter’s Moon.
How Rare Is a Halloween Full Moon?
Despite all the creative Halloween full Moon pictures, a full Moon occurring on Halloween is not a common occurrence and only happens every 18 to 19 years.
Halloween—also known as All Hallows’ Eve—always occurs on October 31; it’s only the day of the week that changes from year to year.
The origin of Halloween itself can be traced back to Samhain (pronounced SOW-in, which rhymes with COW-in), which was an ancient Celtic festival that was celebrated to mark the end of harvesttime. It was also the end of their year and the beginning of the new year, so it was “in between” the two years. It’s said that the spirits of the dead wander around during this time in the moonlight. Learn more about the origins of Halloween traditions.
A New Moon on Halloween
For a truly spooky night, look to the new Moon, when darkness reigns. During this Moon phase, the lunar disk goes black, so the night appears “moonless.” Of course, the Moon is there, but it’s not lit up by the Sun due to its position in its orbit. See more about the so-called dark side of the Moon.
The Moon will be between 0% and 1% illumination on Halloween in 2024, depending on your timezone. See our Moon Phase Calendar—customized by zip code.
The Black Moon
An even rarer oddity is a “Black Moon.” Although this is not technically an astronomical term, “Black Moon” has come to mean the second new Moon in a calendar month. (It’s somewhat the opposite of a “Blue Moon,” which is popularly defined as the second full Moon in a month.) Read more about the Black Moon.
First Full Moon After Halloween
The first full Moon after Halloween is November’s Moon, which is traditionally called the Full Beaver Moon. According to the Algonquin tribes (and early colonists), this was the time to set beaver traps before the swamps froze, to ensure a supply of warm winter furs.
If you carefully observe nature, you might notice that there are certainly patterns and traditions that happen during the first full Moon after Halloween.
- The full Moon after Halloween is thought to be a time when the deer rut (mating season) is in full force.
- Our readers share that it’s the time when snow geese arrive at Chesapeake Bay in lower Delaware and Maryland.
- For many folks, garlic is planted after the first few days of Halloween’s full Moon.
- According to folklore, it’s best to dig sweet potatoes from the ground during the full moon of November.
What would you name the first full Moon after Halloween? Post your comment below!
Reader Comments
Leave a Comment
Moon after halloween name
Hallow moon.
“Tater Moon”
“Tater Moon”
First full moon after Halloween
I label this moon as the "Full Hibernation Moon"
Halloween full moon frequency
I’m not sure why you think a Full Moon falls on Halloween every 18-19 years. It is much closer to every 29 years, due to the fact that Full Moons occur every 29.3 days so approximately 1 out of 29 days has a Full Moon.
full moon after halloween name
I would call the first full moon after Halloween the " elves' moon"
(for the elves working hard on children's gifts for Christmas
Halloween Date Revisited
Posted by another reader: You said "Halloween—also known as All Hallows’ Eve—always occurs on October 31; it’s only the day of the week that changes from year to year." Your example was Thanksgiving which is always on a Thursday, not on a date of a month. What about Christmas, New Year's Day, July 4th, et al.? They can all be on different days of the week. Am I missing something?
Holidays
Yes, holidays are calculated in different ways. Christmas, New Year’s Day, and July 4 are all like Halloween in that they are tied to a date, not a specific day of the week. Some holidays, like Thanksgiving or Labor Day (the first Monday in September), are tied to a day of the week, not a specific date, so they will always be on a certain day (not date).
What would you name the first Full Moon after Hallowe'en
Since deciduous trees lose their leaves by November, I'd call it the Moon of Bare Branches.
Moon after Halloween
The Mooning After.
First Full Moon after Halloween
The Thanksgiving Moon of course! : )
Name of full moon after Halloween
Howling Moon
or Barking Moon
Halloween Date
You said "Halloween—also known as All Hallows’ Eve—always occurs on October 31; it’s only the day of the week that changes from year to year." I don't understand that statement. Most days of the week change from year to year. For instance July 1st was on Wednesday this year and will be on Thursday next year.
Dates
Yes, precisely. Halloween is tied to a specific date, so the only thing that changes year to year is the day it occurs on. Compare this to Thanksgiving (US), which is held on the fourth Thursday in November, meaning that the only thing that changes year to year for Thanksgiving is its date.
ALWAYS A BLUE MOON
Because the lunar cycle is 29.52 days, I would think that a Halloween full moon is always a Blue Moon.
Halloween full moon
When was the last time a halloween full moon fell on a Saturday? And when will it fall on a Saturday again?
Next Blue Hunters Full Moon to fall on Halloween?
Hi,
When was the last time a Blue Hunters Full Moon fell on Halloween?
Also do you know when it will happen next?
Thanks!
Name of Full Moon after Halloween
Mankind’s Full Moon (Something that can bring us ALL together...)
OR
HINDSIGHT’s Full Moon (Hindsight is 2020) Maybe that’s what this year is about...
Full moon
You should call the 1st full moon after The Halloween, The Freedom moon.
Planter
I always do my last mowing ,then sow all my new bulbs I'm adding each year.Happy Halloween everyone
Full Moon in November
Bare Tree Moon!!! All the leaves have fallen from the trees.
Name the Full Moon after Halloween
Hallow Harvest Moon / Candy Apple Moon
First Full Moon After Halloween
Candy Coma Moon
Full Moon after Halloween
To keep it simple, "The Autumn Moon"
Full Moon after Halloween
The Full Moon after Halloween is called the Dentist Moon.
(cavities!)
Full Beaver Moon photo
I was curious about the photo of the Full Beaver Moon, specifically the furry critter in the photo. Are you sure that's a beaver? It looks more like a groundhog to me.
Full Beaver Moon
Thanks for catching that—it was an outdated image and has been replaced!
I truly enjoy the info on
I truly enjoy the info on this site. I ofttimes forward it to the grandkids so they can learn
things they would not normally be exposed to. ........I also learn a lot even at 73 yo!
1st moon after Halloween
Morgan Moon after my great niece or Barknight Moon.