The Hunters Moon

The full Moon in October is traditionally referred to as the Hunters Moon. It is the full moon that follows the Harvest Moon in September. In medieval times people after having gathered in the harvest would use the light from the Hunters Moon to hunt animals to provide meat for their store over the winter months.

Full Moon this month will be on the 19th October, there will also be a partial eclipse of the Moon on the night of 18/19th October. Sadly only being a partial eclipse it will be difficult to notice the effects of the Moon passing into the shadow of the Earth.

The Hunters Moon

 

The Plough

It is surprising just how many people know how to find the Plough in the night sky. For such a well known group it does have a variety of names. Some people refer to it as the Great Bear or Saucepan, while the Americans call it the Big Dipper.

At the moment from Britain the Plough can be found low in the sky in the north west. Once located you can  draw a line through the two end stars of the blade upwards to a fairly bright star all on its own. This is the North Star. This star was so important in the days when people used the stars for navigating by.

This is how you can find the North Star.

 

The Moon and Venus

Hello my name is Martin Lunn, former Curator of Astronomy at the Yorkshire Museum in York. Welcome to my new blog. I am a beginner to Blogging!!

 Look low in the south west after Sunset and see the waxing crescent moon just above a very bright white star like object. This is the planet Venus.

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