by Sid Baglini
Saturday, February 24th, 7:00 PM
Like December’s Full Cold Moon, this month’s indigenous name for the Full Moon does little to en-courage traipsing about under its bright reflection of the Sun’s light. February’s Full Snow Moon is a nod to the fact that this is the month we are most likely to have snow storms and accumulated snow on the ground. Yet moonlight reflected off the snowpack is enchanting and the experience of walking in the hyper illuminated environment is worth the inconvenience of cold temperatures. In our 4 previous years of Full Moon walks, we have never intersected with a snow cover in Malvern, but perhaps this will be our lucky year.
We do have some optimism when we look at the other names given to this month’s Full Moon by Native Americans. They all have to do with animals, a nod to the fact that they were beginning to be more evident in their daily lives and that Spring is coming quickly. The Bear Moon, The Eagle Moon, The Groundhog Moon and The Raccoon Moon must have been a welcome change from all the frigid names associated with December and January’s Full Moons. Also, The Goose Moon is carried over from last month’s Canada Goose Moon. But Winter is not over yet, as we can tell from the Cherokees’ Month of The Bony Moon and The Hungry Moon.
Since the Moon will be at its furthest point from Earth on its elliptical orbit, we have another treat in store. We refer to it as being at the apogee of the orbit, and that means we will be seeing a “Micromoon.” As you can guess, it’s the opposite of a “Supermoon” which occurs at the perigee (closest point to Earth) of the orbit. You won’t really notice a difference in the size but we will pay homage to the “microness” of this Moon.
While we won’t be walking under any meteor showers until April, if skies are clear we will see the beautiful planet Jupiter, which has kept the Moon company all winter.
We hope you will bundle up and come join us for a late winter stroll under The Snow Moon. However, please remember that if there is snow or ice on the streets, we will have to cancel in order to ensure the safety of our Moonatics. Snow on lawns–Go! Snow on streets-No Go! We meet behind Borough Hall and you will find plenty of parking on Channing and 1st Avenues.