The “worm moon” in March: 13 exciting facts about the full moon

The moon has accompanied us humans since ancient times. It has always had an attractive effect on humanity. Especially on nights with a full moon, the silver-colored ball in the starry sky always fascinates us.

But what do we actually know about the moon? Why does it always seem different? Does it make us lose sleep? Does it have any other effects? We make it clear for you:

When we look up at Earth’s satellite, it appears very small. With a diameter of 3,474 kilometers, it is almost a quarter as large as Earth with a diameter of 12,742 kilometers. Compared to the sun, which has a diameter of 1,392,700 kilometers, the moon, like our planet, is small.

The moon does not shine on its own, but, like the earth, it is always half illuminated by the sun. Whether we see a half moon, a full moon or just a half moon from here depends on how the moon relates to the Earth.

When the Earth, the moon and the sun form a right angle, we see a crescent moon. When the moon and sun are opposite each other – that is, when the sun, Earth and moon are aligned – we see a new or a full moon.

A full moon is called a supermoon if its distance from Earth is particularly small. Since the 1970s, people have spoken of a supermoon if the distance between the moon and Earth is less than 367,600 kilometers.

According to the American space agency NASA, the supermoon appears about 17 percent larger due to its short distance and its light even shines up to 30 percent brighter compared to the full moon, which is furthest away.

We can marvel at the next supermoon on September 17, 2024.

As a rule, a supermoon can be admired three to four times a year – and always in the following months. In 2022 this happened four times in a row (May, June, July and August). At a distance of just 357,418 kilometers, the full moon came closest to Earth in July.

Because the moon does not orbit the Earth in a perfect circle, but rather in an elliptical orbit, it can be either near or far from Earth. If it happens that the moon is in the full moon phase and at the same time at the perigee (the point closest to the Earth), it is popularly called a supermoon.

At perigee, the moon is on average about 363,300 kilometers away. At the greatest distance, the so-called apogee, this distance increases to an average of 405,500.

The lunar cycle, also called lunation, is the period from one new moon to the next. During this time we see constantly changing light figures. We distinguish:

What is important is that the moon is actually constantly illuminated by the sun. It is precisely its position relative to the Earth that sometimes allows us to see only part of the illuminated area.

By the way: if you sometimes wonder what phase the moon is currently in when you look at the sky, then there is a “trick” for you: to do this, you have to imagine the “curved” writing that you learned at school. When the moon wanes, it traces a small “a” – the bulge is on the left. As it grows, it follows a small “z” – with a bulge to the right.

The moon has no fixed location. He is constantly on the move. Just like the Earth too. But there is a big difference. The Earth revolves around the sun in one year. To be precise: in 365 days, 5 hours, 48 ​​minutes and 46 seconds. However, Earth’s satellite does not need a year to orbit our planet, but only 27 days, 7 hours and 43.7 minutes. So about a month.

Due to the moon’s constant movement, we are constantly seeing different facets of the moon and its light.

The moon is actually partly responsible for the ebb and flow of the tides. This effect is related to mass attraction: just as the Earth ‘binds’ the moon to its orbit through its gravitational pull, the Earth’s satellite also has influence through its mass. The interplay of the various forces and the formation of ebb and flow is quite complex. Simply put, the moon’s gravity pulls water toward us on Earth.

However, this does not happen evenly, but on the side facing towards it, creating a so-called tidal mountain. To be more precise, the water at the two poles flows towards the moon, so the mass is not “lifted” as it seems.

As you can see in the photo, there is not one, but two tidal mountains: in addition to the side that faces the moon, there is also the other side that faces away from the moon. Why is that?

The reason lies in the centrifugal force of the Earth, which also affects the bodies of water. It is the ‘outward’ force acting on a rotating body – such as a rotating carousel. On the side facing the moon, gravity is stronger than centrifugal force, on the other side it is exactly the opposite.

As a result, two flood mountains form – the reason why high and low tides occur twice a day.

A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth is between the moon and the sun and the shadow of the globe completely covers the moon. By definition, it is always (more or less) a full moon when a lunar eclipse can be observed. This phenomenon is relatively common, but is not always visible from all parts of the world. There are at least two lunar eclipses every year.

The next lunar eclipse will take place on the night of October 17 to 18 and will be clearly visible from Switzerland. However, it will only be a partial lunar eclipse, with the entire surface of the moon not disappearing into the Earth’s umbra. A total lunar eclipse won’t happen again until December 31, 2028.

The moon revolves not only around the Earth, but also around itself – in a so-called bound rotation. This means that it always looks at the same side of the Earth and we can only see this side of the Moon from Earth. So we never see the other side of the moon. On the moon’s surface we can see dark lowlands, so-called mares. Some people interpret various figures from the lowlands.

One of these, for example, is the rabbit. Others think they see a face in the moon. Depending on where we are, the moon is positioned differently than we know it from Switzerland. In the southern hemisphere, from our perspective, it is upside down. Instead of a rabbit, the residents see a woman carrying firewood on her back.

For us, the duties of the moon and the sun are clearly divided: the sun shines during the day and the moon shines at night. But that’s not entirely true. Sometimes the moon can also be seen in the sky during the day. Does the same apply to the full moon? Unfortunately not. The full moon does not depend on whether it is day or night here.

The astronomical event takes place when the Sun, Earth and Moon align in space. Exactly in this order. The Earth then stands between these two heavenly bodies. At this time it is night in the hemisphere facing away from the sun and you can see the full moon from there. But on the other side of the hemisphere it is still day. You cannot see the full moon there because it is hidden behind the earth. This explains why the lunar calendar sometimes says that the full moon falls in the middle of the day.

Many people complain that the full moon robs them of their sleep. But is the moon really responsible for poor and restless sleep?

In 2013, Swiss researchers attempted to investigate the full moon effect in a group of subjects in a sleep laboratory. The subjects took an average of 5 minutes longer to fall asleep. In addition, the sleep duration and the deep sleep phase were shorter than normal, but the study has certain weaknesses, which the researchers themselves later admitted. Only 33 people were tested and the number of full moon nights examined was very small. Further studies have found no link between human sleep and the phases of the moon.

What is known is that light influences our sleep rhythm. It could be that the bright full moon is the reason for a lighter sleep. An argument that could refute this: The three nights surrounding the night of the full moon are twelve times brighter than the half moon.

The menstrual cycle lasts an average of 28 days, almost as long as the moon revolves around the earth. Is this a coincidence? Yes, says a 2019 study that examined the cycles of 1.5 million women who weren’t using hormonal birth control. No evidence has been found to suggest that there is a link between the phases of the moon and menstruation.

However, the length of the menstrual cycle can vary depending on age and ethnicity. Furthermore, the menstrual cycle lasts different lengths in animals, so in humans it appears to be purely coincidental.

A full moon and howling wolves; in the films they often go together. But do animals really cry during a full moon?

No. Howling is the language of wolves; it is the way they connect with their fellow wolves and call for the hunt. Because wolves hunt mainly at dusk, you can usually hear them at night. They may appear to stretch their heads toward the moon when they cry. In fact, they do this to achieve better reach.

You can find the year’s full moon calendar and associated names of the Algonquin, a North American indigenous tribe, here:

(lacquer/cst)