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Stargazers are in for a treat this week: The full moon returns for its May engagement, peaking Thursday morning.
May’s full moon is known as the flower moon, a reference to its appearance in late spring, when many flowering plants begin to bloom again after their winter dormancy. According to NASA, the glowing orb will reach maximum brightness on Thursday at 9:53 a.m. ET.
The best time to see the moon, however, is Wednesday and Thursday night, as it will be below the horizon during its peak in some regions, according to the Farmers’ Almanac. The flower moon will begin to rise after sunset on Wednesday, reaching its highest point after midnight, per EarthSky.
In some parts of the world, including the Washington, D.C. area, the full moon will come so close to the bright star Antares on Thursday night that the star will appear to disappear behind the moon, according to NASA.
The name flower moon is thought to have originated with the Algonquin people living in Canada and parts of the northeastern United States, according to the Farmers Almanac. But ancient groups came up with some creative names for the May full moon that mark the arrival of warmer weather and the new life that grows during spring.
Its old English name is milk moon, according to NASA, a reference to the archaic English word for the month we now call May. The eighth-century monk St. Bede the Venerable referred to May as the month of the three milkings.In the medieval era, people believed that cows could be milked at least three times a day in late spring.
Other names for May’s full moon include the frog moon, from the Cree people of Canada’s North Plains, likely a nod to the spring frog and its birdlike chirping, which is a harbinger of warm weather. The Dakota and Lakota people of the US Great Plains also called the celestial spectacle the planting moon to mark the agricultural practice of planting in the spring for a healthy harvest.
Flower Moon played a small role in a particularly dark period of US history. Martin Scorseses recent Oscar-nominated historical drama Killers of the Flower Moon explores a series of murders of Osage people in Oklahoma. The killings began in May 1921, the month of the flower moon.
The remaining moons of 2024
Of the 12 full moons this year, the September and October lunar events will be considered supermoons, according to EarthSky.
Definitions of a supermoon can vary, but the term generally refers to a full moon that is closer to Earth than normal and thus appears larger and brighter in the night sky. Some astronomers say the phenomenon occurs when the moon is within 90% of perigee, its closest approach to Earth in orbit.
Here are the remaining full moons of the year:
June 21: Strawberry Moon
July 21: Buck moon
August 19: Sturgeon Moon
September 17: Harvest Moon
October 17: Hunters’ Moon
November 15: Beaver Moon
December 15: Cold Moon
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