Full Strawberry Moon this week will be lowest in UK skies since 2006

Daily Mirror

2 days ago

A rare lunar event can be seen in the skies over the UK tonight, with a full Strawberry Moon visible for the first time in nearly twenty years - and it will not reappear until 2043
The 'Strawberry Moon' will be visible tonight, looming large in the UK skies for the first time in 18 years. The stunning lunar event not only marks the end of spring, but it's also seriously rare and won't be seen again until 2043.
Called the Strawberry Moon by some and the Rose Moon by others, because of how low it appears in the sky, the moon will also seem much larger than normal.
‌
The rare celestial event is not one to be missed, and astronomy fans should make sure to go outside and snap a few pictures of the beautiful full moon - that might even take on a red tinge.
‌
It's the first full moon of the summer - and though it reached the fullest phase at 8.44am BST this morning, it will still be visible on the evening of 11 June.
Why is it called a Strawberry Moon?
It's dubbed the Strawberry Moon because of the North American harvests of the tasty red fruit at this time of year, but in other places, it's named the Hot Moon - because it welcomes the higher temperatures of summer. Meanwhile, in parts of Europe it's called the Rose Moon and one of its traditional names is Mead Moon.
Each month there is a full moon - it goes through a full lunar cycle around every 29.5 days - and every single one of these has been bestowed its own nickname. This year, the moon might take on a reddish hue, which is more than appropriate given its name.
Where is the Strawberry Moon visible?
The moon will be low on the horizon, making it appear bigger than it normally looks. This year it is located in the Sagittarius constellation, which from the perspective of the Northern Hemisphere, never moves much beyond the horizon.
This means to get a good view, you will need an obstructed position looking south - no buildings or tall trees getting in the middle of you and the moon.
‌
"The fact the Strawberry Moon is located within these constellations tells you just how low it will be," the BBC Night Sky magazine has reported, so you definitely need to make sure you have a good, clear viewpoint.
It isn't going to appear this low again until 2043, and because of its positioning, might appear feature reddish, or orange hues that aren't normally there.
‌
Why is the Strawberry Moon red in 2025?
Because it's so low on the horizon this year, its light is travelling through more of the earth's atmosphere than usual, which means there are a couple of factors that make it appear red than normal.
Firstly, human pollutants play a part, as do water vapour and dust. The particles that make these up absorb light and scatter it, but they do so selectively - minimising green and blue hues, allowing the strong, warmer colours to appear more vibrant.
Secondly, in the atmosphere that the moon is tracing its lowest path through, there are many nitrogen and oxygen molecules - which scatter certain types of light that have a shortwave length, but don't manage to do the same with longwave length light, orange and red.
‌
So again, the blue, green, and violet shades are muted, but the red and orange stand out, making the moon appear a different colour.
This is also why sunsets feature, red, coppery, and pinkish hues, and combined, these two factors will create an incredible lunar display in this once-in-a-generation event.
‌
Why is the Strawberry Moon in 2025 so rare?
The moon moves around the earth in a 20-year cycle, on a tilted orbit, which means every so often we get a standout event like this one, where the moon is positioned either really high on the horizon, or very low.
Full moons are when the side of the moon facing the Earth is completely illuminated by the sun - so we can see the whole thing. This occurs typically every 29.5 days - a lunar cycle - but these shorter cycles are just part of the much longer orbiting cycle.
What are the other full moons called?
Every full moon has its own name, not just the Strawberry Moon. Below is a full list of the full moons in the entire year, and what date they occurred, or are expected to arrive over the coming months.
Monday, January 13 – Wolf Moon
Wednesday, February 12 – Snow Moon
‌
Friday, March 14 – Worm Moon
Saturday, April 12 – Pink Moon (Micromoon)
Monday, May 12 – Flower Moon (Micromoon)
‌
Wednesday, June 11 – Strawberry Moon
Thursday, July 10 – Buck Moon
Saturday, August 9 – Sturgeon Moon
‌
Sunday, September 7 – Corn Moon
Monday, October 6 – Hunter's Moon (Supermoon)
Wednesday, November 5 – Beaver Moon (Supermoon)
Thursday, December 4 – Cold Moon (Supermoon)