Your Moon Guide for March 2026

When to See the Full Moon in March

March’s Full Moon is at its most illuminated at 11:37 UTC on March 3, 2026.

The Moon always appears full in the days before and after peak illumination. Full Moon is the only phase where the Moon is up all night, with moonrise and moonset occurring around sunset and sunrise.

Moon Phase Times March 2026

Moon phases are divided into primary and intermediate: Primary Moon phases happen at a specific moment in time, while the intermediate Moon phases occupy the times in between.

The Moon Will Pass Through Earth’s Shadow

Lunar Eclipse Live Stream

See the March 2–3, 2026 total lunar eclipse LIVE.

At Full Moon on March 3, the Sun, Earth, and Moon will become perfectly aligned, producing a total lunar eclipse.

Totality—where the Moon’s face is completely covered by Earth’s dark shadow—will last for around 58 minutes, and be visible from large parts of North America, South America, Australia, and Asia.

We’ll be streaming the eclipse live: Our timeanddate mobile observatory will be in the Southwestern United States. We’ll also have feeds from our partners Matt Woods at Perth Observatory in Australia, the Starry Knights in Hawaii, and John Williams in New Mexico.

What Do We Call This Full Moon?

The Full Moon in March happens around the time that winter changes to spring in the Northern Hemisphere. It’s called the Worm Moon, named for the earthworms that come out when the soil warms up.

The Anglo-Saxon name was the Lenten Moon, derived from Germanic languages and meaning spring. The Celts referred to it as the Wind Moon and Plough Moon, while in Old English it was known as the Death Moon and the Chaste Moon, which refers to the purity of the spring season.

Among North American tribes, names for the March Full Moon include the Sap Moon and Sugar Moon. Some Anishinaabe communities in the Great Lakes region call it the Crow Moon and the Snowcrust Moon.

When Will Artemis II Fly Around the Moon?

Artemis II will be a 10-day “flyby” mission that carries four astronauts around the far side of the Moon.

NASA had been eyeing potential launch dates in both February and March. On February 22, however, NASA decided to move the rocket from the launch pad back to the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Why? Engineers came across a problem with the flow of helium to the upper stage of the rocket. The next opportunities for launching Artemis II will come at the beginning of April—but that depends on how work progresses over the coming weeks.

At around 10:30 UTC during our lunar eclipse live stream on March 3—that’s around 35 minutes before the start of totality—we’ll be interviewing NASA’s Dr. Noah Petro, the Project Scientist for Artemis III, the next mission in the Artemis program.

The Moon & Planets in March

Every month, the Moon completes one circuit around the sky, passing through the same 12 or so constellations that the Sun does over the course of a year.

Along the way, the Moon sweeps by each of the planets. This month’s notable close approaches are as follows:

• March 20, Moon-Venus: See it on our Night Sky Map for New York in the early evening sky.
• March 23, Moon-Uranus: There is a catch—you’ll need a telescope or binoculars to see Uranus. Have a look at the pairing from London.
• March 26, Moon-Jupiter: The Moon hangs close to Jupiter for most of the night. See the view from Sydney at 21:00 (9 pm) local time.

The above close approaches are visible from more or less any part of the world—we’ve included the examples from our Night Sky Map to give you a taste of the view from different cities.

Frequently Asked Moon Questions