FULL MOON MYTHS AND FACTS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW
Added on: 30th Dec 2016
THE FULL MOON IS OFTEN THOUGHT OF AS AN
EVENT OF A FULL NIGHT'S DURATION, BUT THIS
IS MISLEADING BECAUSE THE MOON SEEN
FROM EARTH IS CONTINUOUSLY BECOMING LARGER
OR SMALLER (THOUGH MUCH TOO SLOWLY
TO NOTICE WITH THE NAKED EYE). ITS
ABSOLUTE MAXIMUM SIZE OCCURS AT THE
MOMENT WHEN THE EXPANSION HAS STOPPED
AS THE FULL MOON OCCURS EVERY 29.5 DAYS,
FEBRUARY IS THE ONLY MONTH THAT CAN
OCCUR WITHOUT A FULL MOON. ALL OF THE
OTHER MONTHS ARE GUARANTEED TO
WITNESS AT LEAST ONE FULL MOON
WHEN THE FULL MOON COINCIDES WITH THE
MOON´S CLOSEST APPROACH TO EARTH ON ITS
ELLIPTICAL ORBIT, A RARE PHENOMENON KNOWN
AS THE SUPERMOON OCCURS. THE MOST RECENT
OCCURRENCE OF THIS PHENOMENON WAS ON
SEPTEMBER 27–28, 2015, WHILE THE NEXT TIME
WILL BE IN 2033
THE FULL MOON IS OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH
TEMPORAL INSOMNIA. IN THE PAST, THE
REASON WAS OBVIOUS; PEOPLE DID NOT SLEEP
WELL DURING THE FULL MOON DUE TO THE
BRIGHT LIGHT IT EMITTED. THESE DAYS,
HOWEVER, WITH ALL THE ARTIFICIAL LIGHTS
AROUND US, THE FULL MOON´S LIGHT CAN
HARDLY BE THE CAUSE OF THE SLEEP
DEPRIVATION THAT MANY PEOPLE STILL SUFFER
FROM DURING THIS LUNAR PHASE
IT IS SOMETIMES CLAIMED THAT SURGEONS USED
TO REFUSE TO OPERATE DURING THE FULL MOON
BECAUSE OF THE INCREASED RISK OF DEATH OF
THE PATIENT THROUGH BLOOD LOSS. A
STUDY CARRIED OUT IN BARCELONA FOUND A
STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT CORRELATION
BETWEEN LUNAR PHASE AND HOSPITAL
ADMISSIONS DUE TO GASTROINTESTINAL BLEEDING
THE FULL MOON IS CONSIDERED UNLUCKY IF IT
OCCURS ON SUNDAY BUT LUCKY IF IT OCCURS
ON MONDAY. IN FACT, THE NAME OF MONDAY IS
DERIVED FROM OLD ENGLISH “MONANDAEG” AND
MIDDLE ENGLISH “MONENDAY,” WHICH MEAN
"MOON DAY."
THE FULL MOON HAS BEEN THOUGHT TO CAUSE
INSANITY AND EVEN MORE FAMOUSLY,
LYCANTHROPY. ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR
BELIEFS WAS THAT A MAN OR WOMAN COULD
TURN INTO A WEREWOLF IF HE OR SHE, ON A
CERTAIN WEDNESDAY OR FRIDAY, SLEPT
OUTSIDE ON A SUMMER NIGHT WITH THE FULL
MOON SHINING DIRECTLY ON HIS OR HER FACE
THE RAF (ROYAL AIR FORCE) USED THE LIGHT
EMITTED BY THE FULL MOON TO LAUNCH
THEIR ATTACK ON THE GERMAN CITY OF
LUBECK DURING WORLD WAR II ON THE
SATURDAY NIGHT OF 28 MARCH
DOGS ARE KNOWN TO BARK AND HOWL MORE
DURING THE FULL MOON, BUT THEY MIGHT ALSO
BE MORE AGGRESSIVE. A STUDY CARRIED OUT
BY THE BRADFORD ROYAL INFIRMARY (A
TEACHING HOSPITAL) FOUND THAT DOG BITES
ARE UP TO TWICE AS COMMON DURING A
FULL MOON THAN ON OTHER NIGHTS
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