Full moon weekend in Toronto: August full moon is a ‘Blue’ moon
This year’s August full moon will stick around for a little longer than usual. The August moon will appear full for about three days from Friday, August 20 to Monday, August 22 but it is truly full in the middle of the night Saturday into Sunday. That’s right, although it will reach peak illumination on Sunday, August 22 at 8:02 a.m. EDT, it will appear full each night from Friday to Monday, which is why we are calling it a full moon weekend.
When is the moonrise over Toronto
The moon is expected to rise over Toronto at 7:42 pm Friday, 8:18 pm on Saturday and 8:47 pm Sunday in the East-southeast.
Blue Moon
Because it is the third full moon in a season with four full moons, as per the older definition, this August full moon is referred to as a ‘Blue moon’, but don’t expect it to actually appear blue in hue. Since the 1940s it is also called a ‘Blue’ moon simply when it is the second full moon in any given month with two full moons. However, in the case of this weekend’s full moon it is blue by the older defintion.
Sturgeon Moon
Of course as far as all full moons go, each one has many monikers. The August full moon goes by Sturgeon Moon, Green Corn Moon and Hungry Ghost Moon. According to the Farmer’s Almanac, Algonquin tribes called the August moon, the Sturgeon Moon after the large fish that were more easily caught this time of year in the Great Lakes and other major northeastern bodies of water.
Green Corn Moon or Hungry Ghost Moon
The August moon is also called the Green Corn Moon, which originated with the Indigenous as a signal that the corn crop was ready to harvest. Meanwhile, in the Chinese lunar cycle this, the seventh full moon is called the ‘Hungry Ghost Moon.’ The name comes from a Chinese belief that spirits of hungry ghosts roam the earth searching for food and mid-summer is when they are hungriest.
Visible planets over Toronto this weekend
This weekend while basking in the glow of the blue moon, according to NASA, the brightest visible will be Venus, appearing 6 degrees above the horizon in the west. The second brightest planet you will see is Jupiter, appearing 12 degrees above the horizon in the east-southeast. Also visible in Toronto’s night sky will be Saturn, appearing 20 degrees above the horizon in the southeast. There is also a slight chance you might see Mercury low in the west from about 30 minutes after sunset (at 8:23 p.m.) until Mars sets 10 minutes later.
Bright star this weekend
Vega will be super bright this weekend appearing 81 degrees above the eastern horizon. Vega is the brightest of the three stars in the Summer Triangle. NASA says Vega is about twice as large as our Sun, 40 times brighter, and about 25 light-years from Earth.
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