Look skyward tonight for the strawberry moon

The current heat wave may cause you to want to stay indoors. But should you do that in the evening hours of Friday, June 21, you'll miss a rare sight - a strawberry moon.

The moon won't look like a strawberry, and it may appear more golden here, but as it's a full moon, it will be easily visible, according to NASA's Gordon Johnston. "Full moons are opposite the sun, so a full moon near the summer solstice will be low in the sky. Particularly for Europe's higher latitudes, when the full moon is low it shines through more atmosphere, making it more likely to have a reddish color (for the same reasons that sunrises and sunsets are red)," Johnston said.

Johnston also says the next full moon will appear opposite the sun about 9:08 p.m. on the 21st, and continue to appear full for about three days, until Sunday morning. Look toward the southeast to watch the moon rise above the horizon, notes Bob Berman of the Old Farmer's Almanac. (A full moon calculator on the almanac's website gives a moonrise time of 9:10 p.m. for those looking to see it in White Plains or Nyack.)

Berman: "While strawberries certainly are a reddish-pink color and are roundish in shape, the origin of the name 'strawberry moon' has nothing to do with the Moon’s hue or appearance, despite the evocative imagery ... This 'strawberry moon' name has been used by Native American Algonquian tribes that live in the northeastern United States as well as the Ojibwe, Dakota, and Lakota peoples to mark the ripening of 'June-bearing' strawberries that are ready to be gathered."

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This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: June 2024 'Strawberry' full moon to be visible over Hudson Valley NY