Full Strawberry Moon, Saturn reaching opposition make for prime skygazing week

The last full moon of Spring and the annual one for June, known as the Full Strawberry Moon, will hit full phase shortly after midnight strikes on Thursday, June 28.

The Full Strawberry Moon will hit full phase at 12:53 a.m. Thursday, and should make for some good skygazing for the next couple of nights. NASA says the Strawberry Moon gets its name from the Algonquin tribe due to the "relatively short season for harvesting strawberries in northeastern North America."

June's full moon is named for the fact that it's the best time of the year for ripening strawberries, and it also has a couple of names in the Honey Moon, Mead Moon and the Full Rose Moon.

"Wednesday evening into Thursday morning, June 27 to 28, 2018, the bright planet Saturn, nearly at its brightest and closest to the Earth for the year, will appear below the full Moon," the U.S. space agency reports.

"The pair will appear at their closest at around 11 PM EDT. The full Moon after next will be just after midnight on Thursday morning, June 28, 2018, at 12:53 AM EDT."

The Strawberry Moon marks the sixth full moon of 2018, the previous ones occurred on Jan. 1, Jan. 31, March 1, March 31, April 29 and May 29.

As the moon nears its full phase, Saturn will reach opposition meaning it and the Sun are at opposite sides of the Earth. This means it is the best time of the year to view Saturn in the sky, as it makes a close approach with the Moon and comes the closest to Earth it will all year.

AccuWeather reports Saturn will hit opposition around 9 a.m. Wednesday, and that it should be viewable to the "unaided eye all night long" as it rises in the East and sets in the West.

Accuweather

"Cloud-free conditions will lead to uninterrupted views of Saturn for much of the western and central United States on Wednesday night," the website reports.

"If clouds block the Saturn opposition on Wednesday night, onlookers will still have plenty of opportunities to see the planet as it will remain visible in the night sky throughout the summer."

See below for a rundown of the other full moon names, courtesy of National Geographic: