Full Moon Bonfire
Wednesday, September 18, 2024
Location: On the beach between BW 1 and 2
Sunset – 7:20 pm
Moonrise –7:49 pm
High Tide – 9:17 pm
Full Harvest Moon
There’s time for one more bonfire before the beach renourishment. A bonfire on the beach is a great time to see old friends and meet new. We have scheduled this month’s bonfire for the day after the full moon so the moonrise will be after sunset to hopefully see the 99% full moon rise out of the ocean.
To keep things simple, each person brings what you want: food, drinks, chairs, and a stick of firewood for a big bonfire. Nothing will be provided but a beautiful beach, a bonfire, and a full moon.
Hopefully, the weather remains accommodating. People ask if the bonfire will be held if it’s rainy. The bonfire will be canceled if it is raining or rain is threatening as few would be comfortable attending.
By terms of the permit, the fire needs to be out no later than 10:00 pm. The timing of sunset and moonrise allows for a nice evening on the beach with minimal disruption to dinner hour.
Due to the beach renourishment project and the potential presence of equipment on the beach, the full moon bonfires will be suspended for October through December. We will resume in 2025 when it is safe to gather.
Other night sky observation opportunities: There is a partial lunar eclipse visible in Charleston. It is Tuesday from 8:41 pm until Wednesday at 12:47 am. The visuals I’ve seen aren’t that impressive but an eclipse is always a treat. The International Space Station has no visible passes in our area this week. According to spacetourismguide.com, there are no other significant astronomical events in September but don’t forget the autumnal equinox on September 22 signals the official start of fall.
September’s full moon is also a supermoon making it appear bigger and brighter than a regular moon. This is the second of four supermoons in a row. Supermoons are caused by the shape of the Moon’s orbit, which is not a perfect circle. It orbit is an ellipse, or oval, shape. Each month, it reaches a point farthest from the Earth, called apogee, and a point closest to the Earth, called perigee.
How the full moon got its name:
Per Old Farmers Almanac (https://www.almanac.com/content/full-moon-names), September: Harvest Moon (or Full Corn Moon) – The Harvest Moon is the full Moon that occurs closest to the autumnal equinox. In 2024, this occurs in September. This time also corresponds with the traditional harvesting of corn.
Other names:
• Autumn Moon (Cree)
• Child Moon (Tlingit)
• Corn Harvest Moon (Dakota)
• Corn Maker Moon (Western Abenaki)
• Falling Leaves Moon (Ojibwe)
• Mating Moon (Cree)
• Leaves Turning Moon (Anishinaabe)
• Moon of Brown Leaves (Lakota)
This website also says the Cherokee Indians called it the Nut Moon and the English Medieval name was the Barley Moon. Another website says the Chinese call it Chrysanthemum Moon.
-Submitted by Judy Morr