Friday June 21st, is the first full day of summer as well as a full moon. The combination of the two will make the moon appear larger than normal, with possibly an orange or yellow hue. The June full moon is called a Strawberry Moon, and has nothing to do with the color of the moon itself. The term Strawberry Moon came about because that's what people grew during this time of the year. While the actual full moon is on Friday, it will appear full Thursday through Saturday.
This year’s Strawberry Moon also corresponds with the summer solstice. The sun is at it’s peak during the summer solstice, with the moon quite low in the horizon. The low position of the moon, could make the moon appear golden, similar to how sunsets are more of an orange color especially closer to the ground itself. In fact, the moon will only be about 22 degrees above the horizon. The forecast is a good one, if you want to see the moon. Skies will stay mostly clear to partly cloudy the next few nights, with a tiny amount of haze.Â
Along with the summer solstice means fewer hours of daylight. The sun sets around 8:30pm this time of year, and closer to 8pm by August 15th. By September 15th it will be closer to 7pm.
It’s a gradual decline in daylight hours, but we see the most daylight during the month of June. We see roughly 15 hours of daylight in June and only about 9 in December. Keep in mind the sun heats the ground, and the heat from the ground then radiates up to heat the air.
