Full ‘Sturgeon’ Moon Will Join a Stunning Planetary Alignment Next Month—What to Know

An illustration of the full Sturgeon Moon. Shutterstock/vovan/Thomas Hasenberger/bphuyal/vovan/bphuyal

It shines in the night sky every mid-summer fishing season, and its name is steeped in Native American folklore. The full moon in August acquired the moniker of Sturgeon Moon after the overabundance of the bottom-dwelling fish that for centuries helped sustain tribes around the Great Lakes region.

This year’s full Sturgeon Moon falls on Aug. 9 at precisely 3:55 a.m. Eastern Time. But it will also accompany a spectacular astronomical phenomenon worthy of setting your calendars by—a celestial alignment of six planets.

A ‘Fossil’ of a Fish

Considered a “living fossil,” sturgeon have fed indigenous tribes since before the time of the pyramids in Egypt over 4,000 years ago, and was even a food source for the first settlers of Jamestown in 1607, saving their lives. Taking on greater significance than mere sustenance, sturgeon embedded themselves into native folklore and spirituality.