On Friday night (21), several parts of the world had clear skies to observe the Full Strawberry Moon. The phenomenon began at 10:08 pm (Brasília time) and ended this Saturday (22), at 6:48 am, according to the Sky Tonight app.
This name was given to the June full moon by Native Americans, as the strawberry picking season in the Northern Hemisphere was held this month. This does not mean that the Moon will be pink or red, as the name of the event is not associated with the star’s visual phenomena — which may appear in shades of white or orange.
On Friday, it was also possible to observe other planets in the Solar System. Venus and Mercury remained positioned below the horizon, with the first setting 21 minutes after sunset, and the second, 43 minutes.
Name origin
The nickname of this Moon varies according to the people. In Europe, this phase of June was called the Rose Moon or Mead Moon — a typical drink made with the fermentation of honey mixed with water.
Some employees at NASA, the United States space agency, have their own name for the star’s phase change in June. They call it the LRO Moon after the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), a spacecraft orbiting our satellite launched in June 2009.
After June, the next Full Moon will be on July 21st — the so-called Deer Moon, which got its nickname because it occurs in the month in which the antlers grow in males of this species.
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(With information from Giovana Christ)
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