As the clouds begin to roll in there’s always one thing that’s always visible between them — our planet’s satellite — the moon. It will be really hard to miss over the next few nights as it approaches being full because it will be rising right before the sunset and setting just after sunrise. Then, although it won’t be full until Tuesday, it will appear to be full for the next few nights. Besides being December’s full moon, it’s the first full moon after the winter solstice. That means the moon takes the highest path along the sky causing it to stay above the horizon longer than any other moon. This results in the longest night.
Because of this, the Mohicans, a North American indigenous tribe of the upper Hudson River valley, called it the Long Night Moon. However, December’s full moon is most commonly known as the full Cold Moon. This name is used by the Mohawks, who live in Canada and northern New York, mainly around Lake Ontario.
Another December full moon name is the Snow Moon, used by the Cherokee, Native Americans of the South, and the Haida, an indigenous group of British Columbia.
Drift Clearing Moon is what the Cree, North American indigenous people who primarily live in Canada, called December’s moon. Drifting snow is when it’s moved by the wind but doesn’t go any higher than 8 feet. Once the wind blows the snow higher than 8 feet it’s considered to be blowing snow. The Cree also called it the Hoar Frost Moon. Hour frost is when the frost looks like feathers on branch trees.
Frost Exploding Trees Moon is another name the Cree used while the Oglala, a subtribe of the Lakota Native Americans, called it the Moon of the Popping Trees. When there is extremely cold weather, the sap in tress can freeze. Sap has water so it expands when it freezes. This can put pressure on the bark, which can break and sometimes cause an explosion like a frozen pipe.
Look Up appears in the weekend edition. If you have any astronomical questions or facts you’d like to share email news@smdailyjournal.com with the subject line “Look Up.”
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