Snow Moon rises as 2026 prepares for 13 full moon events

YUSUF İNAN / WISE NEWS PRESS

MYKOLAIV, UKRAINE — The February "Snow Moon" rose above the horizon on Sunday evening and will remain visible until Monday morning, marking the second major lunar event of a year set to feature an unusual 13 full moons.

While a standard year typically contains 12 full moons, 2026 will include an "extra" event known as a Blue Moon. This phenomenon occurs approximately every two and a half years because the lunar cycle—which lasts about 29 days and 8 to 19.5 hours—does not coincide perfectly with the duration of Gregorian calendar months.

Origins of the Lunar Names

Full moons have long served as a "calendar" used to track the changing seasons, plan hunting trips, and schedule the planting and harvesting of crops. According to CNN Science, these naming traditions date back to deep antiquity, long before the adoption of the modern calendar.

The February Snow Moon is also known in various cultures as the Storm Moon or the Hungry Moon. Native American tribes provided diverse poetic names for this specific moon:

• Comanche: Wet Moon

  
  

• Creek: Windy Moon

• Shawnee: Crow Moon

The 2026 Full Moon Schedule

The first full moon of 2026, the Wolf Moon, was observed on the night of January 3. Following the current Snow Moon, the remainder of the year will follow this schedule:

• March 3: Worm Moon

• April 2: Pink Moon

• May 1: Flower Moon

• May 31: Blue Moon (the "additional" full moon)

• June 30: Strawberry Moon

• July 29: Buck Moon

• August 28: Sturgeon Moon

• September 26: Harvest Moon

• October 26: Hunter's Moon

• November 24: Beaver Moon

• December 24: Cold Moon

Understanding the Syzygy

Astronomically, a full moon occurs during a moment called "syzygy," when the Sun and Moon are positioned on opposite sides of the Earth, forming a straight line. In this alignment, the entire visible side of the Moon is fully illuminated by sunlight. Residents in the Mykolaiv region have previously observed similar phenomena, including "blood," "strawberry," and "wolf" moons.

www.wisenewspress.com

Source: Novisti N