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July came with the Full Buck Moon as well as the half moon and new moon phases.
July 09th came with this month’s full Moon, one also commonly called either the Thunder Moon or the Full Buck Moon. However, the seventh month of the year was and will be the host of several other celestial events. These include Earth being at aphelion or its satellite being a half moon.
Full moon this weekend – called Guru Purnima, Hay Moon, Mead Moon, Ripe Corn Moon, Buck Moon, or our favorite, ⛈️ THUNDER MOON ⛈️ pic.twitter.com/XLufAdoDEQ
— NASA Moon (@NASAmoon) July 7, 2017
The Full Buck Moon, the Thunder Moon, and The Naming Process
The July full moon, just as the other such event occurring each month, has several nicknames, chosen according to local customs and traditions. One of the seventh month’s full moon most common appellations is the Full Buck Moon.
According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, this was chosen because the lunar event mostly coincides with the period of the year during which antlers are growing in on bucks.
However, July’s full moon is also knowns as the Thunder Moon. This is used because of the significantly higher number of thunderstorms occurring during this time of the year.
Full moons occur as the Earth is in between the Moon and the Sun. June saw the Moon on its farthest orbit point from Earth, so its full moon is the smallest of the year. It was in contrast to supermoons, during which Earth’s satellite appears to be larger than usual.
July 03rd saw the Earth reaching its aphelion. This means that on this date, our planet was at the farthest point in its orbit from the Sun. In contrast, the Earth also passed its perihelion, which means that it was the closest to the Sun in its orbit, on January 04. The perihelion and aphelion take place six months apart from one another.
Another lunar event taking place in July will be the half moon. Taking place on July 16, this means that the moon is in its last quarter, which also led to its being known as the quarter moon. During this, only one-half of the side of the Moon facing Earth will be visible.
July 16th also marks the launch of the historic Apollo 11 mission, and its 48th anniversary. The spacecraft’s reentry and Earth landing are celebrated on July 24.
Because our planet is between the Moon and the Sun, starting with July 23, there will apparently be no moon. This happens as the satellite enters its new moon phase.
Image Source: Pixabay
Brian Galloway
Brian’s philosophy is pretty straightforward: easy living, wishful thinking, heavy criticizing. Despite the fact that he wouldn’t go as far as describe himself a conspirationist, Brian does take everything with a grain of sand. He loves following every lead when covering a story and mostly enjoys to cover politics and US news.
