Skip to main content

For the first time since 1967, we start summer with a ‘Strawberry Moon’

summer solstice full moon strawberry 30668659
dimitargeorgievz / 123RF Stock Photo
So today is the first day of summer, aka the summer solstice,  But it’s more than that. The summer solstice this year is of special significance because tonight is also a full moon. And when the summer solstice and a full moon happen on the same day, it’s called a Strawberry Moon, according to Earth Sky.

The sun is at its highest point of the year and the moon at its lowest today, and that’s what can cause the moon to be cast in unusual colors. The Algonquin tribes called it a Strawberry Moon because in the U.S. Northeast the beginning of summer kicked off strawberry harvest season, according to the Farmer’s Almanac. In other parts of the world, especially where strawberries aren’t native, it’s sometimes called the Full Rose Moon or the Honey Moon. The actual color is usually more like honey or amber, depending on what’s in the atmosphere.

Strawberry Moons don’t happen often — the last time was in the Northern Hemisphere was in 1967, as it happens, at the kickoff of the Summer of Love. The next time a full moon and the summer solstice occur on the same day will be June 21, 2062.

If you want to watch the summer solstice and the full moon tonight to check out the color, the exact timing isn’t crucial. It’s not like an eclipse that can pass in a minute or two.

Summer officially begins at 6:34 p.m. ET and the full moon has been in effect since 7:02 a.m. ET. So the moon is just waiting for the setting of the sun, which sounds kind of romantic (that whole Summer of Love effect?).

If you can’t get outside to watch the Strawberry Moon, you can catch it on live-stream starting at 6:30 p.m. ET complete with commentary by astronomers from  the Farmer’s Almanac and Slooh, an online network of robotic telescopes.

Editors' Recommendations

Bruce Brown
Digital Trends Contributing Editor Bruce Brown is a member of the Smart Homes and Commerce teams. Bruce uses smart devices…
Radiation levels on the moon are 200 times the levels on Earth, study shows
2020 tech trends for the decade nasa artemis moon mission

The moon is constantly bombarded by cosmic radiation and, unlike the Earth which has a magnetic field to keep it safe, there is no protection on the lunar surface from these potentially dangerous particles.

Now, a study has measured the levels of radiation on the moon for the first time and found they are 200 times the levels here on Earth. However, experts say that the levels are still safe for long-term exploration of the moon.

Read more
Europe launches Ariane 5 rocket for first time since pandemic started
On 15 August 2020, Ariane 5 flight VA253 lifted off from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana and delivered two telecom satellites Galaxy-30 and BSAT-4B, and the Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV-2), into their planned transfer orbits.

Arianespace vol VA253 – Galaxy 30 / MEV-2 / BSAT-4b - 15 August 2020 (FR)

An Ariane 5 rocket has taken off for the first time since the global coronavirus pandemic, launching from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana on the evening of Saturday, August 15.

Read more
NASA’s Juno spacecraft maps the northern pole of moon Ganymede for first time
the first infrared mapping of Ganymede's northern frontier

NASA's Juno spacecraft has imaged Ganymede, Jupiter's largest moon, and has captured images showing how its unusual magnetic field affects the ice at its poles.

Juno passed by Ganymede on December 26, 2019, and its path took it over the top of the never-before-mapped northern pole of the moon. The Juno team knew this would be a rare opportunity to observe the moon up close and personal, so they prepared by turning the craft so its instruments faced the surface of the moon.

Read more