August Night Sky

August’s Full Moon is called the Sturgeon Moon because of the great number of this huge freshwater fish that could once be found in lakes and rivers in North America. 

With the arrival of Europeans in North America many of the Native American names for the astronomical calendar were adopted and incorporated into the modern calendar. 

Other names for this Full Moon include Grain Moon, Green Corn Moon, Fruit Moon, and Barley Moon – inspiration for these names is derived from the abundance of crops to be harvested this month.  

 

The indigenous Anishinaabe people of the Great Lakes region call it Manoominike-giizis, the Wild Rice Moon, or Miine Giizis, the Blueberry Moon. The Cree Nation of central USA and Canada calls the August full moon Ohpahowipîsim, the Flying Up Moon. The Iroquois of Eastern North America call it Seskéha, the Freshness Moon.

 

Anyway, fingers-crossed for clear skies tonight and tomorrow.