November's Beaver Moon will occur on Nov. 15 at 4:28 p.m. Eastern Time (2128 GMT). A day later, Mercury will be at greatest eastern elongation; meaning it will be at its furthest distance east of the sun and visible in the evening sky for a short period after sunset. The full Beaver Moon will cross the sky beside the well-known Pleiades star cluster, also referred to as the "Seven Sisters," in the Taurus constellation.
When the moon is exactly on the opposite side of Earth from the sun, it becomes a full moon. The hour it happens depends on one's time zone, since it is measured according to where the moon is relative to the Earth. While this full moon occurs in the afternoon hours on the East coast of the United States, it will be nighttime in Paris (10:28 p.m. local time) and early in the morning in Hong Kong (5:28 a.m.) Nov. 16.
The Beaver Moon is the final of four consecutive supermoons that occurred in 2024, beginning with August's Blue Moon. "Supermoon" is a non-astronomical term that refers to a full moon that happens when the moon is within 90% of its closest approach to Earth in its elliptical, or oval-shaped orbit, according to NASA. Because its distance from Earth changes throughout this orbit, the moon can appear up to 14% larger in the sky during a supermoon due to being slightly closer to us.
In New York City, the moon rises at 4:13 p.m., according to the U.S. Naval Observatory. The same day, the sun sets at 4:37 p.m., meaning one will be able to see the setting sun and the moon in the sky simultaneously. This isn't uncommon, but whether it happens and for how long depends on one's location; as one gets closer to the Equator the time between moonrise and sunset (or moonrise and sunrise) decreases -- for example in Singapore, (which is within 2 degrees of the Equator) the sun rises at 6:47 a.m. Nov. 16 and moonset is at 6:49 a.m. Moving into the Southern Hemisphere the time the sun and moon share the sky increases again; in Buenos Aires moonrise is at 7:45 p.m. Nov. 15 and sunset is at 7:36 p.m.
Even though the moon is on the opposite side of the sun from Earth, it doesn't always pass through Earth's shadow because the moon's orbit is slightly inclined to the plane of Earth's. That means that it usually "misses" the shadow of the Earth. Standing on the moon during a full moon, an astronaut on the side facing Earth would see that it is locally noon, and the Earth would be a great dark disk surrounded by a faint glow of light refracted through the Earth's atmosphere.
While the full moon is an easy target for observers with a pair of binoculars or a telescope, it is so bright that it can be hard to see details on the surface. Because it is locally noon on the moon, there aren't many shadows, so a lot of contrast is lost. The moon is so bright that there are even "moon filters" for telescopes to increase contrast and reduce glare (the light isn't dangerous to your eyes, but the glare makes it hard to see details). Often better views are a few days before or after the full moon, when there are shadows that help define the topography.
Visible Planets
Mercury
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On the night of the November full moon, the planet Mercury will be in the evening sky, low in the southwest. From New York City (and locations of similar latitude, such as Kansas City, Boulder, or Reno) the planet will be about 9 degrees high at sunset; the planet itself sets (in New York) at 5:41 p.m. Eastern time. It will be hard to spot without an unobstructed horizon; by 5:00 p.m. the sun is below the horizon but Mercury is only about 5 degrees high, and against a relatively light sky. The next day (Nov. 16) the planet will reach greatest eastern elongation, the greatest apparent distance from the sun along its orbital path through the sky. On that day the sun sets a minute earlier; Mercury again sets at 5:41 p.m.
As one moves south, towards the equator, Mercury gets higher in the sky; in Miami, on Nov. 15 the sun sets at 5:32 p.m. and Mercury sets at 6:49 p.m. By the end of civil twilight, at 5:56 p.m., Mercury is 9 degrees high; still challenging to see but more visible than from higher latitudes.
In Quito, sunset is at 6:03 p.m. local time and Mercury is 20 degrees high at that point. By 6:30 p.m. when the sky starts to get darker Mercury can be seen at 14 degrees; it sets at 7:36 p.m. Nov. 16.
Getting into the Southern Hemisphere Mercury is much easier to see; even though November is the month the Austral summer approaches and the sun sets later. From Sydney, Australia, where the full moon happens on Nov. 16 at 8:28 a.m., sunset is at 7:37 p.m. local time while Mercury sets at 9:31 p.m. By 8 p.m. the sky is getting dark (civil twilight ends at 8:05 p.m.) and Mercury will be about 16 degrees above the western horizon.
Venus
Venus will be above Mercury in the western sky. From New York the planet will be bright and easily spotted as the sun sets; Venus is often one of the first "stars" to become visible. It will, however, not be that high in the sky; by 5 p.m. Venus is 15 degrees high in the southwest. The planet sets at 7:03 p.m.
As with Mercury, Venus appears higher in the sky as one moves southwards. For observers in Miami, Venus sets at 8:11 p.m. local time, and at sunset (5:32 p.m.) the planet is 26 degrees high; by 6 p.m. it will be 22 degrees high and above and to the left of Mercury.
From near the equator, as in Quito, Venus sets at 8:58 p.m. and by 6:30 p.m. it will be a full 32 degrees high, above and slightly to the left of Mercury. And in Sydney, Australia, Venus is a full 37 degrees high and just south of west at sunset; the planet will appear above and to the right of Mercury by 8 p.m. when it is still 32 degrees high.
Saturn
As Venus sets, the next visible planet is Saturn. From New York City Saturn rises in the afternoon, at 1:39 p.m. Eastern Time, so by the time the sky gets dark, at about 6 p.m., Saturn is high in the southern sky just east of south, about 37 degrees above the horizon. Saturn sets in New York at 12:45 a.m. on Nov. 16.
From Miami, Saturn sets later, at 1:23 a.m. Eastern on Nov. 16. It appears higher in the sky than in New York City in the evening; a half hour after sunset the ringed planet is 51 degrees above the southern horizon. In Quito, Saturn will be most of the way to the zenith at 73 degrees high in the east-southeast by 6:30 p.m. Saturn sets in Quito at 1:33 a.m. local time on Nov. 16.
In Sydney, an hour after sunset on Nov. 16, Saturn will be 64 degrees above the northern horizon; one will see the full moon rising in the east, and Venus setting in the west at the same time. The planet sets at 2:36 a.m. Australian Eastern Daylight Time on Nov. 17.
Jupiter
About an hour and a half after the full moon rises in New York, Jupiter appears (rising at 5:59 p.m. Eastern). By 10 p.m. on Nov. 15 the planet is below and to the left of the moon as one looks eastwards. In the constellation Taurus, the planet will stand out even among the bright winter stars; planets shine with a steady light, whereas stars will tend to twinkle. Jupiter will reach 71 degrees in altitude above the southern horizon when it transits at 1:25 a.m. on Nov. 16, and it is visible until just before sunrise when the sky gets light (Jupiter does not set until 8:52 a.m. Eastern).
In Quito, Jupiter rises at 7:42 p.m. on Nov. 15 and transits at 1:43 a.m. on Nov. 16. That close to the equator Jupiter will appear in the northern half of the sky, a full 67 degrees high as it moves to set in the northwest.
For Southern Hemisphere observers, Jupiter will rise in the northeast; it does so on Nov. 16 at 9:24 p.m. in Sydney, Australia. As it moves across the northern half of the sky it will appear to the right of the full moon. Jupiter will appear to be closer to the horizon than it does in the Northern Hemisphere; it's maximum altitude is about 34 degrees at the latitude of Sydney.
Mars
Mars follows Jupiter, rising at 9:16 p.m. on Nov. 15 in New York. Mars transits at 4:38 a.m. Nov. 16 and reaches an altitude of about 70 degrees, and will stand out in the constellation Cancer the Crab, whose stars are relatively faint. Mars is also recognizable by its reddish hue.
As with the other planets, Mars appears higher in the sky near the Equator. In Quito Mars rises in the east-northeast at 10:54 p.m. local time, and it travels in the northern half of the sky, unlike mid-northern latitudes where it appears in the south. Mars transits at 4:57 a.m. and reaches an altitude of 68 degrees before it fades in the light of dawn.
For Australian and other Southern Hemisphere sky watchers, Mars rises in the northeast at 12:34 a.m. on Nov. 17; the red planet transits at 5:37 a.m. but sunrise is at 5:32 a.m.; at 5 a.m. Mars is about 34 degrees above the northern horizon.
Constellations
In mid-November, the Northern Hemisphere winter constellations are starting to rise early in the evening. From mid-latitudes, looking at the full moon at about 7 p.m., one should be able to spot Capella, the brightest star in Auriga the Charioteer, by turning one's attention to the right towards the northeast; Capella will be just below the level of the moon and form a rough triangle with the moon and Capella forming the top side and Jupiter making a point below and between them both. To the right of Jupiter one will see Aldebaran, the brightest star in Taurus, the Bull.
By about 10 p.m. one can see Orion above the horizon, with the three stars of the Hunter's belt making a near-vertical line in the east-southeast about 23 degrees above the horizon. The Belt stars are named Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka, with Alnitak closest to the horizon. Around the Belt, forming a rectangular shape, are the four stars that mark the Hunter's shoulders and feet. To the left of the Belt is the distinctly orange-red star Betelgeuse, and above and to the right of it is Bellatrix. On the other side of the Belt is Rigel (marking the opposite corner of the box from Betelgeuse) and the last is Saiph, marking Orion's right foot (left from the perspective of an earthbound observer).
Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, rises at 9:56 p.m. on Nov. 15 in New York City, but it doesn't get well above the horizon until about midnight when it is 19 degrees high in the southeast. To the left of Sirius is another bright star, Procyon, Sirius and Procyon are in the constellations Canis Major and Canis Minor, respectively. Both stars are among the sun's nearest stellar neighbors; Sirius is only 8.6 light years away and Procyon is 11.5 light years distant.
As Sirius gets higher one can also see Gemini, the Twins, and the two bright stars that are their heads, Castor and Pollux. At about midnight Pollux will be directly above Mars, and Castor will be above Pollux and slightly to the right. is the one to the left.
In mid-southern latitudes, in Santiago, Chile or Sydney, Australia, the sky gets fully dark by about 9:30 p.m. At that point one will see the full moon in the northeast, and turning to the right (southwards) Rigel in the east, at about the same altitude (about 10 degrees). Turning further south towards the southeast one can see Canopus rising; it is about 20 degrees above the horizon at the latitude of Santiago. Canopus is the brightest star in Carina, the Ship's Keel. The Keel is fully above the horizon an hour later. Looking almost directly above Canopus, one can see Achernar, the end of Eridanus, the River. Achernar is high in the sky; about 60 degrees high. If one looks due north, one will see the Great Square that marks Pegasus and Andromeda; Alpha Andromedae, or Alpheratz, will be the star in the lower right corner.
Beaver Moon and other November moon names
While Americans (specifically those in the U.S. and Canada) call the November full moon the Beaver Moon, such "traditional" names are a combination of European settler cultures and the Native peoples they came into contact with. Not every culture among Native Americans, would use the same names. The Cree people, for example, called it Kaskatinowipisim or "Freeze up Moon." The Cree nation's historic territories are in the Great Lakes region; October and November are when freezing temperatures would begin, especially at night.
This would differ though, in other parts of North America: in the Pacific Northwest, the Tlingit called the 11th full moon Cha'aaw Kungáay, which means "bears hibernate," according to the "Tlingit Moon and Tide Teaching Resource" published by the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Islamic and Hebrew calendars both reckon months from the new moon, so the full moon falls in the middle of the month in both systems. The Islamic calendar calls the Nov. 15 full moon the 13th day of Jumada Al-Awwal, the fifth month of the year. The Hebrew calendar Nov. 15 is the 14th day of Cheshvan.
The KhoiKhoi people in South Africa called the November full moon the Milk Moon, according to the Center for Astronomical Heritage, an organization that works to preserve local astronomical traditions.
If you hope to snap a photo of the full moon, our guide on how to photograph the moon can help you make the most of the event. If you need imaging equipment, our best cameras for astrophotography and best lenses for astrophotography have recommendations to make sure you're ready for the next skywatching target.
Editor's note: If you snap a great photo of the Beaver Moon or any other night sky sight you'd like to share with Space.com and our news partners for a story or image gallery, send images and comments to spacephotos@space.com.
