The Moon will be located on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun and its face will be will be fully illuminated. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Cold Moon because this is the time of year when the cold winter air settles in and the nights become long and dark.
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The Moon will be located on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun and its face will be will be fully illuminated. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Snow Moon because the heaviest snows usually fell during this time of the year. Among the Mi’kmaq people of Eastern Canada, the driving winds that often accompanied February snows led to the name, Snow Blinding Moon. Because this month’s typically harsh weather conditions made hunting very difficult, other common names for February’s moon included the Hunger Moon, the Bony Moon, and the Little Famine Moon. Since hunting is difficult, this moon has also been known by some tribes as the Hunger Moon, since the harsh weather made hunting difficult.
To the early American colonists, the optimal time for trapping beaver, fox and mink was the dead of winter when these animals’ coats were at their fullest. So to them, February’s moon was known as the Trapper’s Moon.
Irene W. Pennington Planetarium 