The last full moon before the arrival of summer is scheduled for Sunday, June 4 at 5:43 am. It will take a special name: the "full moon of strawberries". This has nothing to do with its appearance, which has no chance of closely or remotely resembling the red fruit. Where does this name come from, taken up among others by NASA on its website?
A harvest period
If the American space agency uses this expression of "Strawberry Supermoon", it is precisely that this name originates from the American continent, explains Le Parisien. This full moon occurs during the period which, among the ancient Amerindians, corresponded to the period of strawberry harvest. This was done just before the arrival of summer.
The name of this full moon, however, varies according to the regions of the world. In 1500 in Europe, people liked to speak of "full honeymoon". A reference to the honey harvest that occurred at this time of year. The expression "honeymoon", which corresponds to the day after the wedding, would also be derived from it. Because this period is considered "the sweetest", but there are also more weddings in June, with the arrival of sunny days.
A floral reference
It can also be called "moon of roses". According to some sources, this would be related to the time when roses bloom but it could also be related to the color of the moon at that time, says NASA on its website. According to tradition, this moon must bring joy and prosperity to those who are early enough to have the opportunity to observe it.
This year, the "strawberry full moon", on the other hand, will not be a "super moon". Indeed, the satellite of the Earth will be far from its perigee, the point of the orbit that is closest to our planet. The moon can sometimes be less than 90% of its perigee, or nearly 357,000 km. But this Sunday, it will be at 384,000 km, almost its maximum. The show should still be worth getting up early.
- Sciences
- Moon
- Summer
- Astronomy