There is a relative dearth of bright planets in the evening sky this week. Only one, Mercury, will be present by the end of the month, but even then, this rocky little world is only visible for about 30 to 45 minutes after sunset, far below the west-northwest horizon. After that, you’ll have to wait until midnight to see Saturn, another celestial wanderer.
Having said that, let’s turn our attention to two celestial objects that can be easily seen even from bright cities in the evening hours this week. One is our closest neighbor in space, the other is a familiar star pattern.
The first, of course, is the Moon, which will turn full on June 21, the first full moon day of the summer. The moment when the Moon will be “officially” full will come that evening at 9:08 PM Eastern Time; The moon will be above the horizon for most eastern states, but the moon will not have risen yet for much of the central and western United States. But that’s okay, because for a day or two either side of June 21 the moon will appear practically full to most casual observers.
Native American tribes a few hundred years ago kept track of the seasons by giving different names to each recurring full moon. Their names were applied to the entire month in which each occurred. According to us Space.com list of full moon namesThe full moon of June was traditionally known as the “Strawberry Moon” by every Algonquin tribe, possibly because strawberry picking season reached its peak during this month. Europeans called it the Rose Moon.
Want to take photos of tonight’s full moon? Be sure to check out our guide on how to photograph the moon. If you need imaging equipment, consider our best cameras for astrophotography and best lenses for astrophotography to make sure you’re ready for the next eclipse.
If you’re looking for a new pair of binoculars or a telescope for moon viewing, check out our guides to the best binoculars and best telescopes.
Relating to: June full moon 2024: Strawberry Moon follows solstice
Another name for June
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Are you looking for a telescope to see the full moon up close? In our guide to the best telescopes for beginners, we recommend the Celestron Astro Fi 102 as our top pick.
Based solely on astronomical geometry, British astronomy popularist Guy Ottewell wrote in his annual Astronomical Calendar, sometimes called the June full moon “Honey Moon”. The sun in June is located at its greatest distance north of the celestial equator, and therefore the full moon (almost opposite the sun in the sky) is located at its greatest distance south of the celestial equator. That’s why the June full moon is seen especially low in the southern sky. Objects seen low in the sky are affected by the reddening properties of the atmosphere.
As a result, the full moon in June often has a beautiful golden appearance, just like good honey.
Atmospheric reddening has many other effects. The most obvious is when the sun rises or sets. When sunlight passes through a very thick part of the atmosphere, most of the blue light is absorbed and scattered; red light comes preferentially. The reddening of stars when seen near the horizon is less obvious to the casual observer. Finally, the red color of the Moon during a total lunar eclipse is due to sunlight becoming red as it passes through the Earth’s atmosphere and then being refracted and bent into the Earth’s shadow.
Big Dipper or Dipper?
During this week, when the sky gets dark enough to allow us to see the stars, we can take a good look at the northwestern sky and see the seven stars that make up the Big Dipper. At this time of year the Dipper is oriented sideways with the bowl facing down and the handle pointing straight up.
Interestingly, scientists are pretty sure that the oldest of our star groups date back to the Mesopotamian peoples of five or more millennia ago. In fact, the creatures transformed into ancient Western constellations resemble those in the Bible. And there are hints that some of them are much older. The seven stars of the Big Dipper formed a bear for Native Americans and Old World and Siberian cultures, suggesting that our Big Dipper was part of a Stone Age culture that was at least 8,000 to 12,000 years old. This is the estimated period of the last migration from Siberia to North America via the Bering Strait.
And yet oddly enough, the Big Dipper itself has been a source of frustration for some constellation historians: Who came up with that name?
In Great Britain it is better known as the Plow. But as a Dipper, this is definitely an American phenomenon; This heavenly “drinking gourd” was often mentioned in books of the mid-19th century, but before then there was no such thing. It’s unfortunate that the Little Dipper is much fainter and harder to see compared to the Big Dipper, because – at least to my eyes – it looks more like a real ladle, like a soup ladle. The Big Dipper looks more like a pot.
wagon in the sky
In much of the world, this model was some form of chariot, chariot, or other wheeled vehicle, if not a bear. Shakespeare’s King IV. In Henry VIII the Big Dipper is mentioned as Charles’ Wain (a carriage described as a large, open farm wagon). Translated from a passage on astronomy in Homer’s Iliad as follows:
There he created the world and
skies and sea.
Tireless Sun and Full Moon,
And all the constellations it’s with
The heavens are crowned.
Pleiades, Hyades, power
Orion’s
And also the Bear they call Wain.
There turning and watching Orion,
But he’s the only one who hasn’t bathed in Ocean’s salty bath.
These words date back to B.C. It dates back to around 700 BC, so we can see just how old this seven-star asterism is as a wagon.
Joe Rao is an instructor and visiting professor in New York Hayden Planetarium. writes about astronomy Natural History magazine, Farmer’s Almanac and other publications.