A frustrating night for many people in this area as just at the time when the event was supposed to happen above our head (4 am) -- clouds instead gradually moving in and completely obscured the moon.
What we should have seen was a total lunar eclipse which would spawn a rare and dramatic ‘supermoon’ -- a blood moon, when the full Moon would glide through the shadow of Earth, turning the Harvest Moon a golden-red color akin to autumn leaves.
Supermoons occur when the moon reaches its full phase at or near the satellite’s closest approach to Earth, and appears abnormally large and bright as a result.
Last nights event was quite special; the last supermoon eclipse occurred in 1982, and the next won’t take place until 2033
In the days before light bulbs, farmers relied on moonlight to help them harvest their crops. Many crops ripen all at once in late summer and early autumn so farmers found themselves extremely busy at this time of year. They had to work after sundown. Moonlight became an essential part of farming, and thus, the Harvest Moon was born.
According to folklore, the Harvest Moon is the full Moon that falls closest to the autumnal equinox, the hectic beginning of northern autumn.
In 2015, the Moon was full on September 28th, less than a week after the equinox of September 23rd.
The coincidence sets the stage for a nice display of harvest moonlight -- none of which was visible unfortunately.
