The full moon meets the celestial twins this week. The chart shows the view looking south-east from London on 24 January at 2000 GMT, when the full moon will sit directly below the stars Castor and Pollux in the constellation of Gemini.
The story of the twin half-brothers of Greek and Roman mythology is that Castor was the mortal son of Tyndareus, while Pollux was the divine son of Zeus. Pollux requested that he be able to share his immortality with his brother, so Zeus transformed them into stars.
The moon will be shining brightly, with 99.1% of its visible surface illuminated. According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, this will be the wolf moon. Although commonly used just for the full moon, the name refers to the entire lunar month, a period also known as a lunation.
Lunar names mostly originate from North American sources, both Indigenous and colonial, as well as European sources. The wolf moon is said to have got its name because of the increased likelihood of hearing wolves howl in deep winter.
This particular full moon is the first of 12 that will occur through 2024. The moon is clearly visible from the southern hemisphere too.
