The Sky This Week, 2012 May 29 – June 5 — Naval Oceanography Portal

The Moon waxes to the Full phase this week, adding her glow to the warm nights of late spring. June’s Full Moon occurs on the 4th at 7:22 am Eastern Daylight Time. The popular names for this particular Full Moon are the Flower Moon, Rose Moon, Strawberry Moon, or Honey Moon. These names all derive from Luna’s appearance in the late-night Northern Hemisphere sky. Since the Moon’s path along the Ecliptic takes her to her most southerly excursion of the year, her light is scattered by more particles in the atmosphere, giving her a somewhat "warmer" tone since air molecules preferentially scatter blue light. Early risers in the western parts of the U.S. may also see a ruddy "bite" taken out of Luna’s disc shortly before she sets. This partial lunar eclipse will hide about 37% of the Moon’s face at mid-eclipse, which occurs at 6:04 am CDT (5:04 am MDT, 4:04 am PDT). Look for Luna a mere two degrees below the bright star Spica on the evening of the 31st. On June 3rd she passes four degrees north of ruddy Antares, lead star of Scorpius, the Scorpion.

The Sky This Week, 2012 May 29 – June 5 — Naval Oceanography Portal