Harvest Moon: Here's how to watch and capture the full moon on September 21

As the month of September is nearing its end, it has brought us closer to the Harvest Moon. Stargazers will be able to adore the night sky on September 21, as our nearest celestial neighbour will be at its full display. The upcoming event will mark the arrival of autumn in the Northern hemisphere as Harvest Moon’s are either the last of summer or the first of autumn.

What gave Harvest Moon its name?

According to a description by USA Today, the upcoming full moon is called Harvest Moon because in the early days it helped the farmers in harvesting summer crops by providing ample moonlight in the evening. Notably, it rises every day around the same time for a few nights in the Northern Hemisphere. Another report by Earth Sky suggested that the phenomenon started getting noticed before the days when people had electricity. The reflected light from the Harvest Moon would brighten the crop fields as the daylight slowly started diminishing. 

The reason behind this phenomenon is due to the Moon's proximity during the Earth’s September equinox which usually falls in September. Equinox is the period where days and nights are of equal lengths as the sun is directly above the equator. 

Features of Harvest Moon

As per Earth Sky’s report, the size of the moon, despite being full-sized differs each year due to its non-spherical orbit. In 2020, the Harvest Moon was the second-smallest full moon whereas the same was the most distant and smallest full moon in 2019, stated media sources. The moon this month is likely to be average-sized and will make its first appearance in the morning in Indian skies. Interestingly, the moon takes the orange colour when it is near the horizon, a phenomenon that is caused due to thickness of the Earth’s atmosphere. 

How to watch and capture? 

Indian stargazers can be the first to spot the full moon that will start emerging at 5:24 am on September 21. When looked carefully, viewers will observe that the moon will be directly opposite to the rising position of the Sun, which is one of the features of the Harvest moon. Meanwhile, for those looking to capture social media-worthy pictures of the event, photographing the moon on smartphones can be difficult but possible with a tripod, to avoid any shakiness, and proper camera settings. Whereas those with a DSLR can also use a tripod and set the camera appropriate for low-light photography.

(IMAGE: TWITTER/@RAMIAMMOUN)