Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2022 September 15
See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest resolution version available.

Harvest Moon over Sicily
Image Credit & Copyright: Dario Giannobile

Explanation: For northern hemisphere dwellers, September's Full Moon was the Harvest Moon. Reflecting warm hues at sunset it rises over the historic town of Castiglione di Sicilia in this telephoto view from September 9. Famed in festival, story, and song Harvest Moon is just the traditional name of the full moon nearest the autumnal equinox. According to lore the name is a fitting one. Despite the diminishing daylight hours as the growing season drew to a close, farmers could harvest crops by the light of a full moon shining on from dusk to dawn.

Harvest Full Moon 2022: Notable Submissions to APOD
Tomorrow's picture: pixels in space

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