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PRINTStars, Planets and Full Moons
As we spend more time in darkness, you only have to look skyward to observe planets, stars and the moon. Ever wonder why stars appear to twinkle, but planets don’t? In fact, stars are minute pinpoints of light. No matter how powerful your telescope, a star will always look like a tiny pinpoint with no discernable disk. When we look at the stars through our turbulent atmosphere, those pinpoints become distorted and thus appear twinkle.
Planets on the other hand, appear as disks through a telescope. They have a larger apparent size and hence are not prone to having their light distorted by our atmosphere as much as stars.
Then, there is the Full Moon – visible to the naked eye in all it’s shining glory. Look up tonight because on November 13th the Full Beaver Moon arrives at 1:17am (eastern). On the West Coast it will be on November 12th at 10:17pm. Names were given to moons by Native Americans. Some names were common to all tribes and, in other cases , different names were assigned. In November the beavers work busily getting ready for winter and the greater light helps them accomplish it. So on November 13th we observe the Full Beaver Moon.
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Stars, Planets, Full Moon, Native Americans, Beaver
Peter Geiger is the Editor of the Farmers' Almanac. Read his full biography here.Free Weekly eNewsletter
Farmers' Almanac Long Range Weather
February 8th - February 11th
- Northeast U.S.
Wet snow mixed with rain Mid-Atlantic north through New England; slushy accumulations of 4+" possible.
- Midwest/Great Lakes U.S.
Accumulating snows Kentucky, Ohio, then clearing. Fair elsewhere.
- Southeast U.S.
Wet snow Tennessee, western North Carolina; wintry mix northern Mississippi, Alabama. Elsewhere, rain, then clearing.
- North Central U.S.
Drier, much colder.
- South Central U.S.
Snow parts of Arkansas, then clearing, cold. Clear, much colder elsewhere.
- Northwest U.S.
Drier, but colder.
- Southwest U.S.
Drier, but noticeably colder.
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If you notice a hole in the upper left-hand corner of your Farmers' Almanac, don't return it to the store! That hole isn't a defect; it's a part of history. Starting with the first edition of the Farmers' Almanac in 1818, readers used to nail holes into the corners to hang it up in their homes, barns, and outhouses (to provide both reading material and toilet paper). In 1910, the Almanac's publishers began pre-drilling holes in the corners to make it even easier for readers to keep all of that invaluable information (and paper) handy.