Sturgeon Moon Horoscope: August Full Moon Planning Guide

The Sturgeon Moon is the full Moon that lights up the late-summer sky every August, and the Farmers’ Almanac has tracked its Moon sign as a planning tool for over 200 years. Whether you are reading this in the run-up to an August full Moon or a quiet day in February, the sturgeon moon horoscope below works the same way: use your Sun sign’s notes to set the calendar for the week of the August full Moon, not to predict the future. The themes shift slightly from year to year, but the late-August pivot, from doing to resting, from harvest checklists to fall planning, stays steady. This guide gives you the date, the sign, the folklore, and a sign-by-sign read you can come back to year after year.

When Is the Sturgeon Moon Each Year?

The Sturgeon Moon falls in August almost every year, on the date the Moon reaches full phase that month. Because the lunar cycle runs about 29.5 days, the calendar date shifts by ten or eleven days each year. The exact peak time also shifts by time zone, and the Moon looks full to the naked eye for about a day on either side. The U.S. Naval Observatory’s moon phase data publishes the to-the-minute time for any year.

Year	Sturgeon Moon date	Peak time (Eastern)	Moon sign at peak
2024	Monday, August 19	2:26 p.m. EDT	Aquarius
2025	Saturday, August 9	3:55 a.m. EDT	Aquarius
2026	Friday, August 28 (Thursday evening, August 27 across most of North America)	12:18 a.m. EDT	Pisces
2027	Tuesday, August 17	3:28 a.m. EDT	Aquarius
2028	Sunday, August 6	9:09 a.m. EDT	Aquarius

The Sun travels through Leo from July 23 to August 22 and Virgo from August 23 to September 22. A full Moon always sits in the sign opposite the Sun, so the Sturgeon Moon almost always falls in Aquarius or Pisces. That Leo-Aquarius or Virgo-Pisces axis sets the tone for the week. Our Zodiac Calendar tracks the Moon’s sign on every other day of the year.

What Is the Sturgeon Moon?

The Sturgeon Moon is simply the full Moon of August, given a name passed down through Algonquin tradition and carried forward by the Farmers’ Almanac since 1818. The Almanac uses the Moon’s sign each lunation the same way it uses the Sun’s place in the year: as one signal among many for the planting calendar, the Best Days Calendar, and the rhythm of household work. The late-summer placement in Aquarius or Pisces, opposite a Leo or Virgo Sun, brings the week’s dream-and-checklist pairing into focus.

Sturgeon Moon Horoscope: Sign-by-Sign Planning Notes

Here is a sign-by-sign planning guide for how each zodiac sign may want to use the week of the August full Moon. Find your birthday in the date ranges below to find your Sun sign. Treat the notes as calendar prompts the Almanac would publish for any Best Days window: useful nudges to think about a topic, not predictions about outcomes. Astrologer Kyle Thomas first wrote the planning notes that anchor this section, and they are carried forward and refreshed below for every Sturgeon Moon.

Aries: March 21 to April 19

The Sturgeon Moon lights up the quietest, most private part of your chart, Aries. The week of the August full Moon is a useful planning window for rest, sleep, and the inner reset the rest of the year rarely allows. A dream, a long memory, or a quiet realization could surface and shift how you approach September. Step back from the noise; the week’s most important work happens off-stage. The Almanac’s general rule for any rest-and-restore window applies: trust the body’s signals before pushing through them.

Taurus: April 20 to May 20

The Sturgeon Moon brings your friendships and community forward, Taurus. The week is a useful one to attend the late-summer gathering, reconnect with a circle you have drifted from, or step into a small leadership role in a group you care about. A long-term hope or aspiration may move forward, often through a friend or contact rather than a formal channel. Be ready to say yes to an introduction.

Gemini: May 21 to June 20

One of the most important periods of the year for your career and public profile arrives, Gemini. The Sturgeon Moon will quickly show you whether you are moving toward the year’s major goals or being pulled in a new direction. A promotion, an award, a favorable review, or a new contract may land on your desk. If a work conversation is on the calendar, the late-summer Moon’s emphasis on intuition is in your favor; listen to the gut read on the room before you commit.

Cancer: June 21 to July 22

The Sturgeon Moon is a nudge to embrace new horizons, Cancer. The week is a useful one to book the trip, sign up for the course, or take the small risk that has been on the mental back burner since spring. Travel, academics, legal questions, and longer-distance connections may all be spotlit. Even the smaller version, a new podcast subscription, a museum visit, an evening class, can shift the rest of the year. Sign up. Make the call.

Leo: July 23 to August 22

The Sturgeon Moon highlights your financial picture, Leo. The week is one for settlements, bonuses, inheritances, lines of credit, and the larger money conversations couples often save for the end of summer. Some of you could pay off a debt, close a long-running account, or finalize a major purchase before fall. If married or partnered, you may notice that a partner’s income or resources are part of the picture, sometimes adding, sometimes shifting the balance. Enlisting the aid of a partner or advisor is often the practical move.

Virgo: August 23 to September 22

The Sturgeon Moon often falls opposite your Sun sign, Virgo, which makes the week one of the most important relationship windows of your year. The lunation turns attention toward your closest partnerships, whether a spouse, a business partner, or a co-parent. You may either grow closer or part ways in business or love. On a useful note, the late-summer Moon is a classic window to sign contracts, make agreements, or move in together, as long as the planning calendar allows for careful reading. If a paperwork step has been waiting, put it on the calendar for the week of the August full Moon.

Libra: September 23 to October 22

The Sturgeon Moon highlights your daily routine and your work, Libra. The week is a useful one to clear the inbox, finish the project that has been sliding into the next month, and set a sustainable pace for the run into autumn. This is also a useful moment to assess your work-and-life balance before September lands. You could pick up new projects, find a new role, or sign a client. On a separate note, this is a useful window for a health check-up that has been postponed; the Farmers’ Almanac does not offer medical advice, this is a calendar prompt only.

Scorpio: October 23 to November 21

The Sturgeon Moon lights up the part of your chart that handles romance, creativity, and play, Scorpio. The week of the August full Moon is a good one to plan the date night, sign up for the art class, or pick up the hobby summer pushed aside. For couples, a shift around the heart’s desires could be apparent: a breakup if you are not aligned with a partner, or a deeper commitment if you are. Singles often report finding “the one” under this kind of late-summer Moon. Let yourself enjoy life and feel like a kid again.

RECOMMENDED: Full Moon Self-Care Tips

Sagittarius: November 22 to December 21

Sagittarius, the Sturgeon Moon doubles down on home and family, the most domestic part of your chart. The week is an ideal time to focus on a meaningful change in the home: rearranging a room, planning a renovation, or making a move you have been weighing. Some of you may need to support a parent or another family member through a shift, a move, or a late-summer plan. Set aside an evening for a shared meal and a longer conversation than usual.

Capricorn: December 22 to January 19

The Sturgeon Moon lights up the part of your chart that handles conversation, short trips, and local errands, Capricorn. The week of the August full Moon is a useful planning window for finishing the messages that have piled up since June, returning the calls you have been ducking, and sorting the inbox before September lands. A piece of news, a long-delayed reply, or a fresh idea from a sibling or neighbor could shift your plans for the rest of the year.

Aquarius: January 20 to February 18

The Sturgeon Moon spotlights your finances, Aquarius. Money in motion, money on the way out, or money waiting on a decision all come into focus. The week is a useful one to look at the late-summer budget, settle the small bills before fall starts, and decide which subscription, membership, or service is worth carrying into the rest of the year. Some of you could see a raise, a bonus, or a new client land just before September. In years when the full Moon falls in your sign, the spotlight shifts to you directly: a personal launch, a public step, or a long-deferred conversation finally happening.

Pisces: February 19 to March 20

When the Sturgeon Moon falls in your sign, Pisces, as it does in 2026, it is the most important full Moon of the year on your calendar. You are in the spotlight and you can move matters in your favor more easily than at any other point in the year. This lunation could bring the fulfillment of a major personal or professional goal, often one that involves a public step, a debut, a launch, or a long-deferred conversation finally happening. Block the calendar; this is your week. A close partner is often part of the picture.

Other Names for the August Full Moon

“Sturgeon Moon” is the most familiar August name, but the August full Moon goes by several others in Indigenous, colonial, and folk calendars across North America:

• Green Corn Moon: a name marking the green-ripe corn of late summer, when the kernels are filling out but not yet fully dried.
• Grain Moon: tied to the late-summer grain harvest in colonial and early American almanacs.
• Red Moon: a name for the warm, often reddish tint the August Moon takes on the horizon, an effect of summer haze and smoke.
• Flying Up Moon: a Cree name for the moment fledgling birds first take flight.
• Lightning Moon: a name tied to the frequency of late-summer thunderstorms.

For more on the August Moon’s other names and the folklore behind each, see our companion article on alternative names for the Sturgeon Moon.

Sturgeon Moon Folklore (With a Caveat)

The August full Moon’s folklore tracks back to the season’s biggest catch. Algonquin and other Great Lakes peoples named the lunation for the lake sturgeon, a long-lived freshwater fish that can top six feet and once ran most heavily through warm shallow waters in August. Settlers’ almanacs adopted the name. Other folk readings of the late-summer Moon tied it to grain and corn harvests, to the season’s lightning storms, and to the moment young birds left the nest.

A caveat the Farmers’ Almanac has always carried: folklore is a record of what people noticed, not a forecast. Late-summer thunderstorms, warm hazy horizons, and the rhythm of the harvest are observable patterns that gave the Moon its names. Treat the Sturgeon Moon’s zodiac placement the same way: as a calendar prompt the Almanac uses for planting and Best Days, not a prediction about your personal future. The Almanac has used the Moon’s sign for over 200 years as one signal among many, never as a fortune-telling tool.

Using the Sturgeon Moon for Planting and Best Days

The Farmers’ Almanac has tracked Moon-sign planting for over two centuries. By late August the planting calendar across most of the continental US and Canada has turned toward cool-season crops: a second crop of lettuce, spinach, kale, radishes, and turnips for fall harvest, plus garlic prep in the cooler zones. The week of the Sturgeon Moon falls at the end of the waxing window and the start of the waning window, which the Almanac’s Gardening by the Moon Calendar traditionally reads as the better stretch for above-ground crops planted just before peak, and for root crops planted in the days after.

The Best Days Calendar applies the same logic to household tasks, from weaning livestock to cutting hair to mowing the lawn during the season’s busiest growth weeks. Check regional frost dates against the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map before fall planting. Treat the Sturgeon Moon as the pivot point between summer and fall in the garden plan.

Sturgeon Moon Horoscope FAQ

When is the Sturgeon Moon this year?

The Sturgeon Moon falls in August every year, on the date the Moon reaches full phase that month. The exact date and time shift each year because the lunar cycle runs about 29.5 days. In 2026, the Sturgeon Moon peaks at 12:18 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Friday, August 28 (Thursday evening, August 27, across most of North America). Check the table above for nearby years and our full Moon dates page for to-the-minute timings.

What zodiac sign is the Sturgeon Moon usually in?

The Sturgeon Moon almost always falls in Aquarius or Pisces. A full Moon always sits in the sign opposite the Sun, and in August the Sun is in Leo (July 23 to August 22) or Virgo (August 23 to September 22). When the August full Moon falls in Aquarius, expect a community-and-friendship emphasis. When it falls in Pisces, expect a rest, intuition, and quiet-endings emphasis.

Why is August’s full Moon called the Sturgeon Moon?

The name comes from Algonquin tradition, tied to the season’s biggest catch on the Great Lakes. August was the month when lake sturgeon, a long-lived freshwater fish, ran most heavily through warm shallow waters and were easiest to net. Other traditional names include the Green Corn Moon, the Grain Moon, the Red Moon, the Lightning Moon, and the Flying Up Moon.

How do I use the Sturgeon Moon horoscope for planning?

Find your Sun sign in the sign-by-sign section above and read the planning note as a calendar prompt for the week of the August full Moon. The notes are organized around the part of your chart the late-summer Moon highlights: rest for Aries, friendships for Taurus, career for Gemini, and so on. Treat each note as a useful nudge to think about a topic, not a prediction about an outcome. The Farmers’ Almanac has used the Moon’s sign as a planning tool, not a fortune-telling tool, since 1818.

Is the Sturgeon Moon a good time to plant?

By late August the planting calendar across most of the continental US and Canada has turned toward cool-season crops, including a second crop of lettuce, spinach, kale, radishes, and turnips for fall harvest. The Almanac’s Gardening by the Moon Calendar reads the waxing window before the August full Moon as the better stretch for above-ground starts, and the waning window after as the better stretch for root crops and bulb prep. Check the regional frost dates first and the Best Days Calendar for the specific day inside that window.

Do I need a telescope to see the Sturgeon Moon?

No. The full Moon is easily visible to the naked eye. Step outside near moonrise, about 20 minutes before local sunset on the evening of the full Moon, and look east-southeast. A clear sky and a low horizon are all you need. The Moon looks largest near the horizon, an optical illusion that has fooled humans for centuries.

Is the August full Moon ever a supermoon or eclipse?

Sometimes. The August full Moon is occasionally a supermoon (closer than average to Earth, and slightly brighter), and on rarer years it coincides with a partial or total lunar eclipse. The August 27 to 28, 2026 Sturgeon Moon, for example, is a partial lunar eclipse, with about 96 percent of the Moon shadowed at greatest eclipse. Check the year’s specific dates in our full Moon dates and times resource or at the U.S. Naval Observatory.

Is “Sturgeon Moon Horoscope” the same as the Farmers’ Almanac Zodiac Calendar?

The Farmers’ Almanac uses the Moon’s zodiac sign as a planning calendar, not a fortune-telling tool. The Zodiac Calendar tracks the Moon’s sign every day of the year and is published alongside Best Days and Gardening by the Moon. Same source data, same 200-plus-year tradition; just a planning frame instead of a prediction frame.

Almanac Astrology

The Farmers’ Almanac is renowned for Best Days and Gardening by the Moon, calendars that draw on the positions of the Sun and Moon. Our Sturgeon Moon planning notes use the same source data: the Moon’s sign, the Sun’s sign, and the seasonal placement that colors the week. Treat them as calendar prompts, not predictions.

Happy Full Sturgeon Moon!

Join the Discussion

What do you think of our Sturgeon Moon planning notes?

What is your zodiac sign?

Would you be interested in daily Best Days and zodiac planning notes by email?

Return to Full Moon Horoscopes main page.