A full Strawberry Moon is set to appear in our skies this week, and it's one you don't want to miss if you're a fan of the night sky.
However, don't be fooled by the name - a Strawberry Moon, which appears every June, won't appear pink or red as you may expect. The name was instead adopted by Native Americans as it signalled the time of year to start gathering ripened fruit.
As described by NASA: “The Maine Farmer's Almanac first published Indian names for the full moons in the 1930s. According to this almanac, the full moon in June or the last full Moon of spring is known as the Strawberry Moon, a name universal to just about every Algonquin tribe.
“The name comes from the relatively short season for harvesting strawberries in northeastern North America.”
However, the Strawberry Moon may also be known by some as the 'honey moon'.
NASA say: "Mead is a drink created by fermenting honey mixed with water, sometimes with fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The tradition of calling the first month of marriage the ‘honeymoon’ dates back to at least the 1500's and may be tied to this fullmMoon, either because of the custom of marrying in June or because the "Honey Moon" is the "sweetest" Moon of the year.
“Some writings suggest that the time around the summer solstice at the end of June was when honey was ripe and ready to be harvested from hives or from the wild, which made this the ‘sweetest' moon.”
The Strawberry is set to appear on Friday evening, June 5, with moonrise in Glasgow set to take place at 9.50pm.
