(CNN) — Point your cameras skyward as February’s full moon, known as the snow moon, makes its appearance from midnight Tuesday through midnight Thursday, according to NASA.
The snow moon will be at its brightest on February 16 at 11:57 am ET, but the best time to see it will be after sunset. As a bonus, the moon will be above the east-northeast horizon on Wednesday night, which will place it close to Regulus, a bright star.
February’s full moon will generally be visible in areas around the world that do not have dense cloud cover. However, it will be below the horizon at the South Pole and therefore cannot be seen from that area, according to Christine Shupla, manager of education and public engagement at the Lunar and Planetary Institute.
The snow moon rises over One Tower in New York City’s Lower Manhattan, as seen from Newark, New Jersey, on February 27, 2021.
A large storm system forecast for the central and eastern United States is expected to bring cloud cover, making it difficult to see the moon Wednesday night through Thursday morning, especially for anyone outside. east of the Rocky Mountains, according to CNN Meteorologist Haley Brink.
The best places in the US to see the full moon will be parts of the Southwest and California, where clearer skies are expected.
Native American tribes in the northeastern US first used the name “snow moon” as a nod to the heavy snowfall that occurred in February, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac.
Snowy conditions also caused a shortage of hunting resources, which is why other tribes referred to the moon as the “bony moon”, “hunger moon” and “little famine moon”.
February’s full moon also coincides with the important Buddhist festival Māgha Pūjā, which celebrates a historic meeting between the Buddha and his first 1,250 disciples, according to NASA.
After the snow moon, what’s to come in 2022
There are 10 full moons left in 2022, two of them qualified as supermoons. Here is a list of the remaining moons for 2022, according to the Farmers’ Almanac:
• March 18: Worm Moon
• April 16: Pink Moon
• May 16: Flower Moon
• June 14: Strawberry Moon
• July 13: Stag Moon
• August 11: Sturgeon Moon
• September 10: Harvest Moon
• October 9: Hunter’s Moon
• November 8: Beaver Moon
• December 7: Cold Moon
While these are the popular names associated with the monthly full moon moons, the meaning of each can vary among Native American tribes.