Today:
The Moon rises about a half hour before sunset this evening, one day before it becomes exactly Full, the “Corn Moon” as this year’s September Moon is known. The Harvest Moon occurs closest to the Equinox, which this year is October 6th, though the Full Moon goes by many names in various cultures, including the Mid-Autumn Moon in China, the Barley Moon in the British Isles, and the Nut Moon to the Cherokee. The Full Moon appears opposite from the Sun, as was Saturn will be in two weeks. That’s why you’ll see Saturn just to the Moon’s left as the evening progresses.
Sunday:
The Moon is Full each month as it reaches a position exactly opposite the Sun, so tonight’s Full “Corn” Moon rises as the Sun sets, and then sets as the Sun rises tomorrow morning. This connects with the Moon’s companion tonight, rising to the left and a bit later than the Moon, the planet Saturn. Saturn is nearing its opposite position to the Sun for the year, not surpirisingly called “opposition”, on the 21st.
Monday:
As the sun sets this evening at around 7:45 PM, the Waxing Gibbous Moon, still nearly full, will rise in the east. By 8:30, the Moon will be low in the east-southeast, and the gathering darkness will allow the pale yellow Saturn to again appear near the Moon, now to the Moon’s right, as the Moon’s orbit shifts it to the left or east each and every night.