Hunter's Moon 2025: How to see the October 'supermoon' this week - in special three-in-one occasion

• This month’s full moon will be on display across the UK early this week
• Usually known as the Hunter’s Moon, October will also be this year’s Harvest Moon
• It will be a so-called ‘supermoon’ - making it bigger than usual
• There should be good visibility across most of the country, so long as the weather cooperates

This month’s full moon will be a rare triple threat for amateur stargazers - and it’s coming up fast.

The October full moon will be the first ‘supermoon’ since November last year - meaning it will be especially large and bright - and comes as the first of three.

Unusually, it also has two names. The October full moon is typically known as the hunter’s moon, but it will also be this year’s harvest moon.

Don’t worry if all of these moon names have got you confused. Here’s what each of them means - as well as when exactly you’ll be able to see this special harvest supermoon for yourself:

What is a ‘supermoon’ - and what do October’s full moon names mean?

This month’s full moon will be a supermoon, BBC Sky at Night says, the first since last November. Not only that, but so will November’s and Decembers - giving us three to end the year on. A supermoon is a full moon that appears larger than usual. This happens because the moon orbits the Earth in an egg-like shape, meaning that at certain points in the year, the moon will be much closer to us than others.

There is usually one full moon each month, and the ‘hunter’s moon’ is the nickname given to October’s. Many of these full moon names date back to traditional names used in Native American timekeeping - just like August’s sturgeon moon and September’s corn moon - although some were created later.

According to the Royal Observatory Greenwich, October was the preferred month “to hunt summer-fattened deer and fox unable to hide in bare fields”. This full moon is also particularly bright and remains in the sky for a long time, “giving hunters the opportunity to stalk prey at night”, its experts said, which is where the hunter’s moon moniker comes from.

But this weekend will also be the harvest moon, a special name reserved for the full moon closest to the autumn equinox. This is usually in September, but this year, the October full moon is closer. As a bright, long-lasting moon, it is said to enable farmers to work late into the night bringing in crops from the fields, the Observatory added.

When and where to moongaze this month

This month’s full moon will rise on Tuesday night (October 7), at around 6.20pm, BBC Sky at Night says. It should be visible throughout much of the night, as it makes its way across the sky - meaning that you can take it in at your leisure.

Its size and brightness mean that you’ll have a good chance of seeing it most anywhere in the UK, so long as there isn’t any extreme weather. Dense cloud cover is really the biggest problem you might face get in the way.

The Met Office’s cloud cover map only forecasts a couple of days in advance. But before making any moongazing plans, you should check it out online here closer to the time to get an idea of whether to expect clear skies in your local area.

The moon has a unique power to capture our imagination - and our attention. Check out this story to find out more about one interesting poll, exploring how people across the UK say moon phases affect their sleep.