If you looked at a calendar for october 2024 and thought it was just a standard thirty-one-day stretch leading up to Halloween, you missed a lot. Honestly, it was one of the most jam-packed months in recent memory, blending massive astronomical events with a heavy-hitting slate of religious and secular holidays.
Most people just remember the candy. But there was a lot more going on.
The Big Holidays and Long Weekends
The structure of the month was a bit lopsided. It started on a Tuesday and ended on a Thursday. For those working 9-to-5s in the U.S., the real anchor was Monday, October 14. This was a federal holiday, recognized by the government as Columbus Day, though an increasing number of states and cities now celebrate it as Indigenous Peoples' Day.
Because it landed on a Monday, it gave millions of people a three-day weekend. Some used it for leaf-peeping in New England; others just used it to catch up on sleep.
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But for the Jewish community, the calendar for october 2024 was essentially one long series of observances. It wasn’t just one day. It was the "High Holy Days" season.
- Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) began at sundown on October 2 and ran through October 4.
- Yom Kippur followed shortly after, starting the evening of October 11.
- Sukkot kicked off on October 16, leading into Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah toward the end of the month.
Basically, if you had Jewish colleagues or friends, they were probably "out of office" for a good chunk of the month. It's easy to lose track of these dates because they shift every year on the Gregorian calendar, but in 2024, they dominated the October schedule.
That Ring of Fire and the Hunter’s Moon
If you weren't looking at your desk calendar, you should have been looking at the sky. October 2024 was a massive month for space nerds.
On October 2, the same day Rosh Hashanah began, there was an annular solar eclipse. People called it the "Ring of Fire." It wasn't visible from the continental United States—you had to be in parts of South America or out over the Pacific to see the full effect—but it set a specific "vibe" for the start of the month.
Then came the Hunter’s Moon on October 17.
This wasn’t just any full moon. It was a Supermoon. Because the moon’s orbit was at its closest point to Earth (perigee), it looked about 14% larger and significantly brighter than your average full moon. If you were driving home that Thursday night and thought the moon looked unusually "in your face," you weren't imagining it.
Other astronomical highlights:
- October 20-21: The Orionid meteor shower peaked. Usually, this is a great show, but that big Supermoon from a few days prior was still so bright it kinda washed out the smaller "shooting stars."
- Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS: This was the "blink and you miss it" guest of the month. Around mid-October, it became visible to the naked eye in the western sky just after sunset. People were getting incredible photos of it with just their iPhones.
The Events That Defined the Month
Globally, October 2024 was intense. It wasn't just about planning costumes. On the political stage, Mexico made history on October 1 when Claudia Sheinbaum was inaugurated as the country’s first female president.
In the U.S., the month was dominated by the final sprint of the 2024 election cycle. You couldn't turn on a TV or open a social app without being buried in campaign ads. But outside of politics, nature was making its own headlines. Hurricane Milton tore through Florida around October 9-10, coming right on the heels of Hurricane Helene. It disrupted travel, destroyed infrastructure, and basically threw everyone's October plans into chaos across the Southeast.
On a lighter note, sports fans had the World Series. The Dodgers and the Yankees—a classic matchup that feels like it’s straight out of a history book. It gave the end of the month a very specific "October Baseball" energy that you only get a few times a decade.
Why We Care About October 31
We have to talk about Halloween. In 2024, it fell on a Thursday.
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Thursday Halloweens are weird. They aren't as "party-friendly" as a Friday or Saturday, but they're better than a Monday. Most neighborhoods saw the trick-or-treating happen exactly on the 31st, though many "adult" parties were pushed to the following weekend, November 1 and 2.
And for those who celebrate Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights, the timing was unique. In 2024, the main festivities for Diwali actually landed on October 31. This created a fascinating overlap of cultures—fireworks and lamps (diyas) mixed with pumpkins and ghosts.
Actionable Takeaways for Your Next October
Looking back at the calendar for october 2024 teaches us a few things for future planning.
1. Check the Lunar Cycle Early
If you’re planning a camping trip or a photography session, don't just look at the date. If a Supermoon is happening (like it did on the 17th), it will ruin your stargazing but make for incredible night hikes.
2. The "Holiday Buffer"
When Jewish holidays, federal holidays (Columbus/Indigenous Peoples' Day), and Hindu festivals like Diwali all cluster in one month, shipping and professional deadlines get messy. If you're a business owner, always build in a 3-day buffer for October projects.
3. Weather is No Longer Predictable
With Milton hitting in mid-October, it’s a reminder that "Hurricane Season" (which technically ends Nov 30) is very much active during this month. If you're traveling to the Gulf or the Atlantic coast, travel insurance isn't optional—it's a requirement.
4. Thursday Halloweens Require a Plan
If Halloween is on a weekday, the "fun" usually starts the Friday before. If you wait until the actual day to buy candy or a costume, you're going to find empty shelves. In 2024, the smart people did their shopping by October 20.
October is more than just the bridge to the holidays. It’s a month of transition where the sky, the government, and the seasons all seem to change at once. Whether you were watching a comet or just trying to navigate a flooded street, the 2024 version was one for the books.