This week on Monday (October 6th, the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar) marks the warmest traditional festival for the Chinese – the Mid-Autumn Festival. During this time, people enjoy eating mooncakes, admire the moon, have reunion dinners, and go out to appreciate lanterns and play, symbolizing the beautiful meanings of family reunion and harvest.
This year’s Mid-Autumn Festival is particularly special because of the appearance of a “super moon” in the night sky, adding a touch of romance and poetic charm to the reunion night. In addition, Western people refer to this full moon closest to the autumn equinox as the “Harvest Moon,” bringing a sense of joy symbolizing a bountiful harvest to Western families.
The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) stated that the brightness of the super moon is 30% higher than a full moon at its farthest point and appears about 14% larger, providing people around the world with a more magnificent lunar landscape. Due to the elliptical orbit of the moon around the Earth, this full moon happened to reach its perigee this time, coming about 363,000 kilometers close to Earth, which is more than 20,000 kilometers closer than the average distance of 384,000 kilometers between the Earth and the moon, making it appear larger and brighter than usual.
The moment of this moon being the fullest occurred on October 7th at 11:48 a.m. Taiwan time, verifying the folk saying “The moon is fullest on the 15th day.”
Two more occurrences of super moons are expected on November 5th and December 4th. However, for the Chinese, these two super full moons cannot compare to the brilliance of the Mid-Autumn Festival moon, as they lack the profound connotations of family reunion and happiness symbolized in traditional culture.
Below are some breathtaking views of the Mid-Autumn full moon captured by professional photographers around the world.