Next Full Moon: Beaver Moon

Why it is called the Beaver Moon

Beavers finish their lodges and dams in November before the freeze, and trappers once set their traps then.

The Frost Moon and Mourning Moon are alternative names as the last full moon before the December solstice in most years.

Late autumn full moons climb high again; on a clear night the moonlit landscape can be bright enough to read by.

Lore

November was when beavers finished their dams and lodges before the freeze, and when trappers set their traps for thick winter pelts. The Frost Moon marks the first hard frosts, and the Mourning Moon, in some traditions, the moon before the winter solstice.

Trivia

• The Beaver Moon is the highest full moon since January and stays up around 14 hours at mid-northern latitudes.
• A Beaver Moon lunar eclipse in 2021 lasted more than six hours, the longest partial lunar eclipse in centuries.
• Beavers do not hibernate; they live off branches stored under the ice.

All Beaver Moon dates ›

Gardening by the Moon

Full moon marks the turn from the waxing half of the month, when tradition favours sowing above-ground crops, to the waning half, when root crops, perennials and pruning take over. See this month's planting calendar ›

About full moons

A full moon happens when the Moon is opposite the Sun in the sky, so its entire Earth-facing side is lit. The exact moment is the same everywhere on Earth; only the clock time differs by time zone, which is why the date can shift by a day between Asia and the Americas. Full moons repeat every 29.53 days, so most years have 12 and about one year in three has 13.

A Blue Moon is a second full moon within one calendar month. A supermoon is a full moon that occurs near perigee, the Moon's closest point to Earth, and looks up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than a full moon at apogee. The traditional names come from Native American, colonial American and European almanac traditions and describe the season rather than the Moon's appearance.