The third full moon of 2021 will appear this weekend, offering sky gazers the opportunity to see the biggest and brightest moon of the year so far.
March’s full moon is traditionally known as the Worm Moon in the northern hemisphere, as it comes at the end of winter when the ground begins to thaw. Nasa executive Gordon Johnston also noted that this month’s moon could be considered a “supermoon” by some definitions due to its proximity to Earth.
First coined by the astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979, a supermoon is generally classed as a new or full moon that is within 90 per cent of its perigee – its closest approach to Earth.
“Supermoons have become popular over the last few decades. Depending upon how you interpret this definition, in a typical year there can be two to four full supermoons in a row and two to four new supermoons in a row,” Mr Johnston wrote in a blog post. “Different publications use slightly different thresholds for deciding when a full Moon is close enough to the Earth to qualify as a supermoon. For 2021, some publications consider the four full Moons from March to June, some the three full Moons from April to June, and some only the two full Moons in April and May as supermoons.”
Celtic people called the March full moon the "moon of winds." And, according to "A Dictionary of the Choctaw Language" (published in 1915), the Choctaw people called it the "big famine" – perhaps because it was the season when winter food stores would start to run low. It was named "worm moon" after "earthworm casts that appear as the ground thaws," NASA wrote in a post online.Southerners are more likely to use the term because of they have an abundance of earthworms, unlike the northern part of the U.S.
"When glaciers covered the northern part of North America they wiped out the native earthworms," NASA explained. "These glaciers melted about 12,000 years ago and the forests grew back without earthworms."
While "worm moon" is the moon's most popular nickname, there are several other names for the last full moon of winter, including: the sugar moon, crow moon, crust moon and the corn moon.
Names Given to the Moon by Different Native American Tribes: Rain (Diegueno). Bud Moon (Kiowa). Eagle Moon,Rain Moon (Cree). Green Moon (Pima). Deer Moon (Natchez). Moon of Winds (Celtic). Lizard Moon (San Juan). Death Moon (Neo-Pagan). Wind Strong Moon (Taos). Amaolikkervik Moon(Inuit). Little Frog Moon (Omaha). Little Spring Moon (Creek). Crane Moon (Potawatomi). Long Days moon (Wishram). Big Famine Moon (Choctaw). Moose Hunter Moon (Abenali). Whispering Wind Moon (Hopi). Little Spring Moon (Muscokee). Fish Moon (Colonial American). Snow Sore Eyes Moon(Dakota). Catching Fish Moon (Agonquin). Snow Crust Moon (Anishnaabe). Spring Moon (Passamaquoddy). Much Lateness Moon (Mohawk). Chaste Moon (Medieval English). Buffalo Calf moon (Arapaho, Sioux). Seed (Dark Janic), Plow Moon (Full Janic). Strawberry, Windy Moon, Lenten Moon (Cherokee). Worm Moon, Sugar Moon, Crow Moon, Crust Moon, Sap Moon. (Algonquin).
VIDEO FULL MOON FROM HIMALAYAS
March’s full moon is traditionally known as the Worm Moon in the northern hemisphere, as it comes at the end of winter when the ground begins to thaw. Nasa executive Gordon Johnston also noted that this month’s moon could be considered a “supermoon” by some definitions due to its proximity to Earth.
First coined by the astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979, a supermoon is generally classed as a new or full moon that is within 90 per cent of its perigee – its closest approach to Earth.
“Supermoons have become popular over the last few decades. Depending upon how you interpret this definition, in a typical year there can be two to four full supermoons in a row and two to four new supermoons in a row,” Mr Johnston wrote in a blog post. “Different publications use slightly different thresholds for deciding when a full Moon is close enough to the Earth to qualify as a supermoon. For 2021, some publications consider the four full Moons from March to June, some the three full Moons from April to June, and some only the two full Moons in April and May as supermoons.”
Celtic people called the March full moon the "moon of winds." And, according to "A Dictionary of the Choctaw Language" (published in 1915), the Choctaw people called it the "big famine" – perhaps because it was the season when winter food stores would start to run low. It was named "worm moon" after "earthworm casts that appear as the ground thaws," NASA wrote in a post online.Southerners are more likely to use the term because of they have an abundance of earthworms, unlike the northern part of the U.S.
"When glaciers covered the northern part of North America they wiped out the native earthworms," NASA explained. "These glaciers melted about 12,000 years ago and the forests grew back without earthworms."
VIDEO FULL MOON FROM HIMALAYAS
Magnificent!