February’s full moon is aptly named.

The next full moon is most commonly known as the “Snow” moon, a fitting title given it occurs in one of the coldest times of the year. The next full moon will occur on Wednesday, February 16, and, according to NASA will appear opposite the sun at 18:57 p.m. (local time in Greece). The moon will appear full for about three days around this time, from about midnight Tuesday morning to about midnight Thursday night.

The name of the moon dates back to the 1760s when Captain Jonathan Carver, said after a visit with Native American tribes the moon was dubbed the “Snow Moon,” because “most snow commonly falls during this month than any other in the winter.”

Like many other full moons, this one has a variety of names. It’s also known as the Storm or Hunter Moon; the Wolf or Candles Moon; the Bald Eagle Moon or Eagle Moon; Bear Moon or Black Bear Moon. The Dakota called this the Raccoon Moon, and certain Algonquin peoples named it the Groundhog Moon. The Haida tribe named it Goose Moon.
The February full moon also corresponds to the Hebrew Purim Katan and the Chinese Lantern Festival; the Hindu Magha Purnima; and Buddhist Navam Poya.

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