Strawberry Moon to Rise Over Haverford Tuesday

By Sherri London:

Delaware County residents who look upward Tuesday night may notice a full moon providing lots of light in the nighttime sky.

Known as the “Strawberry Moon,” courtesy of the Algonquin Native American tribes, the moon technically reaches its “full” peak around 12:19 p.m. EST. While that means residents won’t be able to spot it at its precise peak of fullness, it’s still expected to create quite a spectacle when night falls, EarthSky.org notes.

June’s full moon earned its name because its position in the sky served as a signal to Native Americans that it was time to gather ripening fruit, Almanac.com reported. Since strawberries aren’t native to Europe, it’s called the “rose moon” on that continent.

Native Americans named each full moon according to important information they kept track of based on changes in the night sky. February’s moon, for example, is known as the full snow moon because that’s when the heaviest snows traditionally fall. September’s full moon is known as the corn moon because it signals the beginning of the harvest season. For a complete list of full moon names, visit Almanac.com online.

As for Tuesday’s Strawberry Moon, residents in the Delaware County area may have to peek through storm clouds to see it. The National Weather Service is calling for cloudy skies and possible showers this evening.

Patch file photo