08/28/2026
The 98.6% illuminated Sturgeon Moon ascends above the summit ridge of Vermont's Camels Hump a few minutes past sunset Wednesday, as seen from a bit over seven miles to the northwest in the town of Richmond. (Special thanks to the amazing couple who invited me onto their deck for this pristine perspective on the mountain!) On a flat horizon the moon would have risen at 7:07 p.m., but stand close enough to a big mountain, and you can delay the time of the moon's initial appearance.
August's full moon is called the Sturgeon Moon, according to The Old Farmer's Almanac, "because the giant sturgeon of the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain were most readily caught during this part of summer." The almanac reports that other names include Flying Up Moon (Cree), referring to when young birds begin learning to fly; Corn Moon (Algonquin, Ojibwe), Harvest Moon (Dakota) and Ricing Moon (Anishinaabe), signifying this is the time of year to gather maturing crops; Black Cherries Moon (Assiniboine), marking the time chokecherries become ripe; and Mountain Shadows Moon (Tlingit) in the Pacific Northwest.
This year, the Sturgeon Moon features a near-total lunar eclipse, visible tonight across much of North America. More than 96% of the lunar surface will plunge into Earth's shadow, and the refracting sunlight will make the surface appear blood-red. Here in Vermont, the eclipse begins at 10:33 p.m. Thursday, reaches maximum at 12:12 a.m. Friday, and ends at about 1:52 a.m.
The moon becomes full — that is, when the lunar surface reaches 100% illumination — at 12:20 a.m. Friday, just after the deepest moment of the eclipse. The moon will look full to the naked eye when it rises Thursday and Friday evenings. If you have clear skies, be sure to get outside and take a look!
