On August 23, 2025, the sky will bring us a rare event called a Black Moon. The name sounds mysterious, but it doesn’t mean the moon will look different. In fact, you won’t see it at all — because it’s a new moon, hidden from view when its sunlit side faces away from Earth. What makes this one unusual is its timing: it will be the third new moon in a season that happens to have four. That raises the question— why is the third one called the Black Moon instead of the fourth?
To answer that, we need to look at the full moons and the traditional names people gave them. Long before electric lights and printed calendars, the moon was a dependable clock in the sky. Its steady rhythm guided farmers, hunters, and entire communities through the year. Over time, cultures around the world gave each month’s full moon a name that tied directly to the season and the work or changes in nature happening at that time.
Here’s the traditional list:
• Wolf Moon – January, when wolves howled through the long nights.
• Snow Moon – February, during the heaviest snows of winter.
• Worm Moon – March, as the ground thawed and earthworms appeared.
• Pink Moon – April, for the wild phlox flowers that bloom in spring.
• Flower Moon – May, when blossoms peak.
• Strawberry Moon – June, marking the short strawberry harvest.
• Buck Moon – July, as new antlers push out on young deer.
• Sturgeon Moon – August, for the abundance of sturgeon in rivers.
• Harvest Moon – September, the full moon closest to the autumn equinox.
• Hunter’s Moon – October, the full moon right after the Harvest Moon.
• Beaver Moon – November, the time to set traps before waterways froze.
• Cold Moon – December, during the longest nights of the year.
These names weren’t just poetic — they were practical. Some were especially tied to turning points of the year. The Harvest Moon had to fall near the autumn equinox, the Hunter’s Moon had to follow it, and the Cold Moon had to shine close to the winter solstice. Keeping those names in their proper season was essential — otherwise, the Harvest Moon wouldn’t mark the harvest.
That system worked well — until the math of the moon’s orbit caused a season to hold one moon too many. Usually, each season has three full moons that fit neatly with the cycle of names. But every so often, a season squeezes in four full moons. That extra throws the sequence off. Imagine if the Harvest Moon — the one farmers relied on to mark the time of year — slipped into October, or if the Hunter’s Moon drifted into November. Suddenly, the names would no longer match the seasons they were meant to guide.
To prevent this, early calendar-keepers and almanac makers created a simple rule. The third full moon in a four-moon season took on the special label — Blue Moon. This kept the fourth full moon in its rightful place, so traditions like the Harvest Moon and Hunter’s Moon remained anchored to the right time of year.
Even though new moons never carried seasonal names, the same rule was later applied to them for consistency. When a season has four new moons, the third one is given the special title of Black Moon. This summer follows that rule: the new moon on August 23, 2025 is the third of four, so it takes the Black Moon label.
Black Moon may sound mysterious, but it’s just a clever calendar solution. By giving the third moon in a crowded season a special name, people kept the rest of the lunar cycle in step with the seasons. For full moons, traditions like the Harvest Moon and Hunter’s Moon stayed where they belonged. For new moons, it was about keeping the same rule in place.
So while you won’t see the Black Moon of August 23 — hidden as always during the new moon phase — it quietly takes its place as the “extra” moon, preserving a rhythm that has guided people for centuries.