Today marks the occasion of the "Hunter's Moon". A full moon which occurs each October but this year is special.  Tonight's full Moon is the biggest full Moon of 2007. It's no illusion.  The Moon's orbit is an ellipse with one side 30,000 miles closer to Earth than the other. The full Moon of Oct. 25-26 is located on the near side, making it appear as much as 14% bigger and 30% brighter than lesser full Moons we've seen earlier in 2007.

This can be found on NASA's web site, "According to folklore, October's full moon is called the "Hunter's Moon" or sometimes the "Blood Moon." It gets its name from hunters who tracked and killed their prey by autumn moonlight, stockpiling food for the winter ahead. You can picture them: silent figures padding through the forest, the moon overhead, pale as a corpse, its cold light betraying the creatures of the wood.

So how many moons do we really have? Twelve to be exact:

• January - Wolf Moon 
• February - Snow Moon 
• March - Worm Moon 
• April - Pink Moon 
• May - Flower Moon 
• June - Strawberry Moon 
• July - Buck Moon 
• August - Sturgeon Moon 
• September - Harvest Moon 
• October - Hunter's Moon 
• November - Beaver Moon 
• December - Cold Moon

Ever wonder why the moon appears so large at the horizon and so small up in the sky? This phenomenon referred to the "Moon Illusion" is best explained by scientists but it has everything to do with your brain's perception of relative size as it compares the moon to objects on the horizon. Try taking a picture of the same moon and you'll be sorely disappointed that your camera doesn't see things quite the way you do.

Enjoy the show tonight and as the moon rises near sunset and appears to fill the sky.