February’s Snow Moon

WALK WHEN THE MOON IS FULL

by Sid Baglini

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2021, 7:00 PM

This month’s full moon has surely earned its name: The Snow Moon.  Yet with the unseasonably warm temperatures that have finally arrived to usher out the month, we are liable to have no snow on the ground for our walk.  It will probably be quite muddy and wet so we will stick to paved roads for this walk and avoid the swampy ground at the battlefield. 

This full moon will actually peak at 3:17 a.m. on the 27th, but we will walk the evening before because it is closest to the peak, and because rain is predicted for Saturday.  

Other names for this full Moon are the Hunger Moon and, more gruesomely, the Bony Moon, referring to the results of a dire lack of food this time of year.  Reference to the renewal of life results in The Bear Moon as cubs are born this time of year. Various Native American tribes ascribed other animal names including The Bald Eagle Moon, The Raccoon Moon, The Groundhog Moon and The Goose Moon, presumably because of the presence of these animals during this time of year.  Fittingly, it is also called The Storm Moon due to the frequency of winter storms this time of year (of which we were acutely aware during the past 3 weeks).

On our walk, we will try to get a look at Mars, the only planet visible at the moment.  Since we last cast our gaze on the Red Planet, it has gained some Earthy apparatus which is sending us visual and auditory data that is truly other-worldly.

If you are eager to get outside for something other than shoveling snow, plan to join us on Friday night at 7:00 for a stroll.