An ultra-rare Strawberry Moon will appear in the sky early next week for the last time until 2043. This will be the lowest full moon in the sky 2006 and is part of a 18.6 year moon cycle.
The Strawberry Moon gets its name from Native Americans who marked the first full moon of June (which this particular full moon will be) as the best time to harvest wild strawberries. The full moon will rise on Tuesday, June 10 and Wednesday, June 11.
This year the moon will live up to its name and take on a red tinge as it hangs low in the night sky. This is because the light reflecting off it from the sun will be refracted into red light as it passes through more of the Earth’s atmosphere, a process known as Rayleigh scattering.
When are where to see it
Peak illumination of the moon actually occurs at 8.46am on Wednesday, June 11, 2025, but the best viewing opportunity is on Tuesday (June 10) at dusk at 10.04pm, when the moon rises low in the southeast.
From London, expect moonrise around 8.22pm on Tuesday evening—bright, low, and beautiful.
A little more about the history
While this year’s Strawberry Moon is due to be red, the colour of it actually has nothing to do with why its called ‘Strawberry’. The name has its roots in the Native American Algonquin tribes. The tribes lived in the northeastern region for about 8,000 years before English settlers arrived and used the June full moon to know when strawberries were ripe for harvesting.
Ancient Europeans have also named this moon the Mead Moon or Honey Moon as this full moon also marks the beginning of the honey harvest. The word honeymoon stretches back to the 1500s and these days it means the holiday after people get married. It is theorised that this is linked to the Honey Moon full moon in June due to the custom of marrying in June.
Weather and viewing conditions
Weather conditions are important when doing any sort of stargazing, particularly cloud cover. Thankfully, the Met Office predicts that on Tuesday evening there will be cloud but with break throughs of moon during the night so you should be able to get a good look at the moon.
The next day will be mostly clear too so you can also see the moon during its peak during the morning and the night is also due to be a clear one.
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