March's full worm moon is arriving: What to know
Spring is just around the corner, and with it comes the worm moon -- a celestial sign that winter is fading.
Keep reading to find everything you need to know about this particular full moon.
When is the worm moon in 2025?
The worm moon will arrive on March 14, 2025, according to NASA.
The full moon "will appear full for about three days around this time, from Wednesday evening into Saturday morning," the agency states.
Why is it called the worm moon?
The Old Farmer's Almanac, which began publishing full moon names in the 1930s, explains that March's full moon is called the worm moon because earthworms start to appear as the ground begins to thaw.
According to NASA, southern Native American tribes specifically gave it this name due to the "earthworm casts that appear as the ground thaws."
What are other names for the worm moon?
Various Native American tribes have named the March full moon based on different signs of spring, according to NASA.
For instance, some northern tribes call it the "Crow Moon" because the cawing of crows signals the end of winter.
The Old Farmer's Almanac notes that many northern cultures have end-of-winter names for the March full moon. The Ojibwe and Chippewa tribes near the Great Lakes, for example, refer to it as the "Snow Crust Moon" or "Hard Crust on the Snow Moon," as the snow begins to thaw during the day but refreezes at night, forming a brittle crust.
What's visible in the sky alongside March's worm moon?
On the morning of Friday, March 14 -- the day of the full Worm Moon -- the moon will be 12 degrees above the western horizon as twilight begins at 6:23 a.m. E.T. No planets will be visible at that time, NASA said.
The most prominent star in the sky will be Vega, located 68 degrees above the eastern horizon. As the fifth brightest star in the night sky and the brightest in the constellation Lyra, Vega is part of the "Summer Triangle" along with Deneb and Altair.
It lies about 25 light-years from Earth, has twice the mass of the Sun, and shines 40 times brighter.
