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'Strawberry moon' Thursday is last supermoon of the year -- sort of

A supermoon is a full moon that appears larger than a typical full moon.
Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

Thursday night's moonrise, called the Strawberry Moon, will be the last near-supermoon of 2021.

According to the Old Farmer's Almanac, the name "Strawberry Moon" originated with Algonquin tribes in eastern North America, who knew the June full moon as a signal to gather ripening fruit of wild strawberries. It does not mean the moon will be pink or red.

The moon reached peak illumination at 2:40 p.m. ET Thursday, but will be visible later when it rises.

A supermoon is a full moon that appears larger than a typical full moon, due to it being close to Earth, according to the Almanac. By the Almanac's standards, Thursday night's moon doesn't meet the threshold to be designated as a supermoon, since it's more than 224,000 miles away from Earth. 

"However, given that it’s only a couple thousand miles farther away than April and May’s supermoons, viewers won’t observe a perceptible difference," the Almanac explains. "The full Moon will still appear big and bright this month as long as we enjoy dark, clear night skies!"

Travis Pittman contributed to this report.

 

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