A Sturgeon Moon rises over the San Bernardino Church in L'Aquila, Italy.
(Image credit: Photo by Lorenzo Di Cola/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The full moon of August 2026 will occur at 12:18 a.m. (0416 GMT) on Aug. 28, as the lunar disk shines directly opposite the sun in Earth's sky.Its arrival will trigger a breathtaking lunar eclipse late in the month, which will be visible across the Americas and parts of Africa and Europe as Earth passes between the sun and moon to bathe the lunar disk in shadow.August's full moon is often referred to as the Sturgeon moon — a Native American name that reflects the time of year that the giant fish are most easily pulled from the waters of the North American Great Lakes and Lake Champlain, according to the Old Farmer's Almanac.When to see the August full moonStargazers in the U.S. will see the Sturgeon Moon rise over the eastern horizon at sunset on Aug. 27. You may notice the moon adopt a yellow-orange hue in the hour following moonrise, as the blue wavelengths of its light are scattered by Earth's atmosphere by an effect called Rayleigh scattering.The lunar disk may also appear subtly larger while close to the horizon thanks to a phenomenon known as the "Moon Illusion". This optical illusion tricks our brains into thinking that the moon is bigger than it really is when it shines close to foreground objects, as opposed to when it's higher in the sky.Earth's shadow will already be visible darkening the lunar surface by the time the moon rises for viewers on the west coast of the U.S. in cities like Los Angeles, while those viewing from east coast cities like New York will have to wait a few hours after sunset until our planet's umbral silhouette begins to darken the lunar disk.
