Full Moon Calendar 1981 with 12 full moons
The Full Moon 1981 Calendar had 12 full moons, seasonal blue moon, solstices, equinoxes, and full moon eclipses to help you keep track of the upcoming dates.
A full moon occurs when the Earth is directly between the Sun and Moon so that the moon looks completely illuminated when you look at it. It happens about once a month or, 29.53 days on average.
Typically there are 12 full moons each year, which was true in 1981.
What were the 1981 Full Moon Dates?
In 1981 there were 12 full moons. Here is a quick list of the 1981 Full Moon dates based on the information provided by NASA:
- January 20, 1981 02:39 EST (07:39 UTC)
- February 18, 1981 17:58 EST (22:58 UTC)
- March 20, 1981 11:22 EST (16:22 UTC)
- April 19, 1981 03:59 EST (08:59 UTC)
- May 18, 20:04 20:45 EST (May 19, 1981 01:04 UTC)
- June 17, 1981 11:05 EST (16:05 UTC)
- July 17, 1981 00:39 EST (05:39 UTC)
- August 15, 1981 12:37 EST (17:37 UTC)
- September 13, 1981 23:09 EST (September 14, 1981 04:09 UTC)
- October 13, 1981 08:49 EST (13:49 UTC)
- November 11, 1981 17:26 EST (22:26 UTC)
- December 11, 1981 03:41 EST (08:41 UTC)
Ready to dive a little deeper into the 1981 dates? Take a look at each month, the names associated with each full moon, the eclipses that will occur, and the dates for the equinoxes and solstices.
Full Moon Calendar 1981
In 1981, there were 12 full moons on the calendar. While there was not a calendar blue moon, 1981 had a seasonal blue moon.
The February 1981 Full Moon was the third full moon in a winter season with four full moons so it was considered a seasonal blue moon.
As part of the January and July 1981 full moon there penumbral lunar full moon eclipses.
The dates and times are provided by NASA in Eastern Standard Time (EST) with Daylight Saving Time (DST) for part of the year. Also below is the Universal Time Coordinated (UTC) time. This was previously referred to as Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
Here are the dates of the 1981 Full Moons:
January 20, 1981 (Full Wolf Moon)
The January 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Wolf Moon, was on Tuesday, January 20, 1981 02:39 EST or 07:39 UTC. This was the second full moon of the Winter 1980-1981 season as the December full moon occurred hours after the 1980 Winter Equinox.
There will also be a Penumbral Lunar Eclipse at the same time as the full moon, technically 11 minutes after the full moon peak.
February 18, 1981 (Full Snow Moon)
The February 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Snow Moon, was on Wednesday, February 18, 1981 17:58 EST or 22:58 UTC. This was the third full moon of the Winter 1980-1981 season.
The February 1981 Full Moon was also a seasonal blue moon because it was the third full moon in a season that had four full moons.
March 20, 1981 (Full Worm Moon)
The March 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Worm Moon, was on Friday, March 20, 1981 11:22 EST or 16:22 UTC. This was the fourth and last full moon of the Winter 1980-1981 season as it occurred hours before the Spring Equinox 1981.
The Vernal Equinox (Spring) was on March 20, 1981 13:03 EST or 18:03 UTC, the same day as the March Full Moon.
April 19, 1981 (Full Pink Moon)
The April 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Pink Moon, was on Sunday, April 19, 1981 03:59 EST or 08:59 UTC. This was the first full moon of the Spring 1981 season.
May 18, 1981 (Full Flower Moon)
The May 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Flower Moon, was on Monday, May 18, 1981 20:04 EST or May 19, 1981 01:04 UTC. It was the second full moon of the Spring 1981 season.
June 17, 1981 (Full Strawberry Moon)
The June 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Strawberry Moon, was on Wednesday, June 17, 1981 11:05 EST or 16:05 UTC. This was the third full moon of the Spring 1981 season as it occurred before the Summer Solstice.
The Summer Solstice was on the calendar for June 21, 1981 07:45 EST or 12:45 UTC.
July 17, 1981 (Full Buck Moon)
The July 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Buck Moon, was on Friday, July 17, 1981 00:39 EST or 05:39 UTC. This was the first full moon of the Summer 1981 season.
There will also be a Penumbral Lunar Eclipse at the same time as the full moon, technically 9 minutes after the full moon peak.
August 15, 1981 (Full Sturgeon Moon)
The August 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Sturgeon Moon, was on Saturday, August 15, 1981 12:37 EST or 17:37 UTC. This was the second full moon of the Summer 1981 season.
September 13, 1981 (Full Harvest Moon)
The September 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Harvest Moon, was on Sunday, September 13, 1981 23:09 EST or September 14, 1981 04:09 UTC. This was the third full moon of the Summer 1981 season.
The Autumn Equinox is on the calendar for September 22, 1981 23:05 EST or September 23, 1981 04:05 UTC. As the September full moon was closer to the Autumn Equinox than the October full moon, it was called the Full Harvest Moon.
October 13, 1981 (Full Hunter’s Moon)
The October 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Hunter’s Moon was on Tuesday, October 13, 1981 08:49 EST or 13:49 UTC. It was the first full moon of the Autumn 1981 season.
November 11, 1981 (Full Beaver Moon)
The November 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Beaver Moon, was on Wednesday, November 11, 1981 17:26 EST or 22:26 UTC. It was the second full moon of the Autumn 1981 season.
December 11, 1981 (Full Cold Moon)
The December 1981 Full Moon, also called Full Cold Moon, was on Friday, December 11, 1981 03:41 EST or 08:41 UTC. It was the third full moon of the Autumn 1981 season.
The Winter Solstice is on the calendar for December 21, 1981 17:51 EST or 22:51 UTC.
What were the names of 1981 full moons?
The names of the 1981 full moons are as follows:
- January: Full Wolf Moon
- February: Full Snow Moon
- March: Full Worm Moon
- April: Full Pink Moon
- May: Full Flower Moon
- June: Full Strawberry Moon
- July: Full Buck Moon
- August: Full Sturgeon Moon
- September: Full Harvest Moon
- October: Full Hunter’s Moon
- November: Full Beaver Moon
- December: Full Cold Moon
The September full moon is called the Full Harvest Moon because it’s closer to the Autumn Equinox than the October Full Moon.
Was there a blue moon in 1981?
In 1981 there was a seasonal blue moon as part of the Winter 1980-1981 season because it had four full moons. The February 1981 full moon was considered a seasonal blue moon, which occurred on February 18, 1981 17:58 EST or 22:58 UTC. The March Full Moon occurred a few hours prior to the Vernal Equinix making this possible.
There was not a calendar blue moon in 1981 because none of the months had 2 full moons that year.
1981 Equinoxes and Solstices
Below are the dates for the equinoxes and solstices from 1981. The Spring Equinox and March full moon fell on the same date. The peak of the full moon occurred a few hours prior to the equinox.
The Winter 1980-1981 season had four full moons because the peak of the December 1980 full moon occurred a few hours after the Winter Solstice and the March 1981 full moon peaked a few hours prior to the Spring Equinox. The February 1981 full moon was considered a seasonal blue moon as it was the third full moon in a season with four full moons.
All of the other 1981 seasons had three full moons.
| Month | Equinox/Solstice | 1981 Date | UTC Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| March | Vernal Equinox (Spring) | March 20, 1981 13:22 EST | 18:03 UTC |
| June | Summer Solstice | June 21, 1981 07:45 EST | 12:45 UTC |
| September | Autumn Equinox | September 22, 1981 23:05 EST | 04:05 UTC (September 23, 1981) |
| December | Winter Solstice | December 21, 1981 17:51 EST | 22:51 UTC |
The first full moon after Spring Equinox 1981 was on Sunday, April 19, 1981 03:59 EST or 08:59 UTC. It was the April 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Pink Moon.
The first full moon after the Summer Solstice 1981 was on Friday, July 17, 1981 00:39 EST or 05:39 UTC. It was the July 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Buck Moon.
The first full moon after the Autumn Equinox 1981 was on Tuesday, October 13, 1981 08:49 EST or 13:49 UTC. It was the October 1981 Full Moon, also called the Full Hunter’s Moon.
The first full moon after the Winter Solstice 1981 was on Saturday January 9, 1982 14:53 EST or 19:53 UTC. It was the January 1982 full moon because the December 1981 full moon occurred before the Winter Solstice in 1981.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are a few frequently asked questions about the 1981 Full Moon Calendar to help you review the moons in the past.
How many full moons in 1981?
There were 12 full moons in 1981 with one full moon each month of the year. There was not a calendar blue moon that year, which would have increased the total number of annual full moons.
When was the first full moon of 1981?
The first full moon of 1981 was on Tuesday, January 20, 1981 02:39 EST or 07:39 UTC. It was called the Full Wolf Moon. It was also yhe second full moon of the Winter 1980-1981 season.
