                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2023 September 30

                         A Harvest Moon over Tuscany
                 Image Credit & Copyright: Antonio Tartarini

   Explanation: For northern hemisphere dwellers, September's Full Moon
   was the Harvest Moon. Reflecting warm hues at sunset, it rises behind
   cypress trees huddled on a hill top in Tuscany, Italy in this telephoto
   view from September 28. Famed in festival, story, and song, Harvest
   Moon is just the traditional name of the full moon nearest the autumnal
   equinox. According to lore the name is a fitting one. Despite the
   diminishing daylight hours as the growing season drew to a close,
   farmers could harvest crops by the light of a full moon shining on from
   dusk to dawn. This Harvest Moon was also known to some as a supermoon,
   a term becoming a traditional name for a full moon near perigee. It was
   the fourth and final supermoon for 2023.

    Note: Non-NASA APOD mirror sites will be updated if the US goverment
                                 shuts down.
                  Tomorrow's picture: new moon near apogee
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                             & Michigan Tech. U.

