The nights are cool, alas! And soon we’ll take our last swim of the year in the lake. Fall is coming fast, and with the season come the darkest days of the year, the “spooky” season, the first snow, and the fall colors.
The first full moon of the season arrives three days after the fall equinox on September 23—the moon will be full in the Montreal sky on September 26, 2026, and it’s called the Harvest Full Moon or the Corn Full Moon.
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THE FALL EQUINOX
The fall equinox, which occurs every year between September 21 and 24 in the Northern Hemisphere, falls on September 23, 2026, in Montreal.
The word “equinox” comes from the Latinaequus (equal) andnox(night). It is a day and night that each last 12 hours. The hours of daylight and the hours of darkness are equal.
From an astronomical perspective, this is a moment when the sun is perfectly aligned with the Earth. Our planet’s axis of rotation is aligned with the sun without tilting to either side of the equator.
During the equinox, the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere receive the same amount of light—and the same amount of shadow.
There are two equinoxes per year, in the fall and in the spring. In 2026 (in the Northern Hemisphere), the fall equinox is on September 23, and the spring equinox is on March 20. In the Southern Hemisphere, the dates of the equinoxes are the same (obviously), but the seasons are reversed.
After the fall equinox, the nights will grow longer and longer in Montreal—until the winter solstice, the longest night of the year.
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THE HARVEST FULL MOON
The full moon in September, the Harvest Full Moon, occurs three days after the fall equinox this year—on September 26, 2026, at 12:49 p.m.
The Harvest Moon is special—higher and brighter than the others throughout the year. It was under this full moon that fields were harvested and sweet corn was gathered. That’s why it’s also called the “Corn Moon,” according to the Farmers’ Almanac.
Among the Indigenous nations of North America, this full moon is called;
- The Autumn Moon (Cree)
- The Moon of Falling Leaves (Ojibwe)
- The Moon of Changing Leaves (Anishinaabe)
- The Brown Leaf Moon (Lakota)
- The Moon of Yellow Leaves (Assiniboine)
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