ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — September’s full harvest moon will be the fourth and final supermoon of 2023, and lunar watchers will be able to see it from Thursday night into Friday morning.

The moon will rise just before 6 p.m. CT, but will reach peak illumination at 4:58 a.m. CT, according to NASA, but will be entirely illuminated through Saturday morning.

A supermoon is a full moon that is closer to Earth than normal, appearing larger than normal in the sky.

There have been four supermoons this year, including August’s rare event of two in the same month. The next will occur in September 2024, and again in October and November.

According to CNN, the moon will be 14,046 miles closer to the Earth than its average distance. The moon was the closest to the Earth on August 30th, when it was only 221,954 miles away.

A harvest moon is a full moon that occurs during the harvest season, close to the autumn equinox, which occurred on September 23rd. According to the Old Farmers’ Almanac, it is also known as the “corn moon” and “barley moon.”

A harvest moon often appears orange in color when it rises, due to the thickness of the earth’s atmosphere near the horizon.