August 2024 Full Sturgeon Moon

On August 19, 2024, we will be treated to the full Sturgeon Moon.  This full Moon occurs at exactly 2:26PM EDT – the exact moment the Sun and Moon are on opposite sides of the Earth.  Of course, we won’t be able to see it at this exact moment, but it will look full and round when it rises later that evening at 8:37PM.  The Moon gets its name from the lake sturgeon, the largest freshwater fish in North America.  In late summer, and particularly in August, these fish were easy to catch and were an important food source for many Native American tribes who lived in what are now the St. Lawrence, Hudson Bay, Great Lakes, Mississippi River and Coosa River watersheds.

Although Sturgeon Moon is the most common name for August’s full Moon there are so many others.  There are names associated with plants and harvesting such as the Lakota name Moon of the Ripening. The southern plains Ponca tribe call this the Corn is in the Silk Moon and the Shawnee call it the Plum Moon.  There are August Moon names associated with animals.  For instance, the Arapaho call this Geese Shedding Their Feathers Moon and the Cree call it the Young Ducks Begin to Fly Moon.  Summer heat and drought conditions have given rise to names such as the Catawba name Dry Moon and the Shoshone name Hot Moon.

This Moon is being called a Blue Moon.  A Blue Moon is defined as the second full moon that occurs during a calendar month.  The August 19 full Moon is the only full Moon in August, so what gives?  We have to go back to the 1937 edition of the Maine Farmers’ Almanac.  This old Almanac gave a seasonal definition of Blue Moon. It stated that occasionally one of the four seasons would contain four moons instead of the usual three.  And because it was very difficult to calculate when these extra Moons would occur the uncertainty led to the expression Once in a Blue Moon.  Using this original Maine Almanac rule our August 19 full Moon is indeed a Blue Moon.  Summer began on the summer solstice, June 20, and will end on the Autumnal Equinox, September 22.  During this time there will be four full Moons – June 21 Early Summer Moon, July 21 Midsummer Moon, August 19 Blue Moon and September 17 Late Summer Moon.  Moon history is fascinating!