Friday, September 08, 2006

The Harvest Moon


Last evening I watched as the Harvest Moon rose from behind the mountains. I first noticed a glow in the eastern sky followed by a bright pinpoint of light shinning through the distant tree tops. Quickly I ran for my Canon and began firing from the deck railing. There was no time to spare for it only takes a minute or two to rise above the trees. NASA has the following to say about the Harvest Moon.

The Harvest Moon is no ordinary full moon; it behaves in a special way. Throughout the year the Moon rises, on average, about 50 minutes later each day. But near the autumnal equinox the day-to-day difference in the local time of moonrise is only 30 minutes.
In times past this came in handy for northern farmers who are working long days to harvest their crops before autumn. The extra dose of lighting afforded by the full Moon closest to the equinox is what gives the Harvest Moon its name.

4 comments:

Tim said...

Absolutely Gorgeous! What else can I say about it! Your giving Chad a run for his money! I think I will stop posting photos on my blog after looking at yours!

Chad Oneil Myers said...

Great image and interesting commentary.

Coy Hill said...

Tim, don’t be disheartened, Chad is constantly “raising the bar” for all of us! I probably would not be searching the “the pic” so diligently if it were not for him. Anyway I really enjoy your blog and your pics. Keep ‘em coming!

Chad, maybe next month I can get lucky and capture the Hunters Moon.

Chad Oneil Myers said...

"Hunters Moon"! Sounds cool, is that when the Yeti comes out?

Thanks for the "raising the bar" comment, I appreciate it.