All you need to know about the June moon

On the night of Thursday, June 28, a strawberry moon will illuminate the sky until Friday morning June 29th.

The full moon of June is known as a "strawberry moon" because the Algonquin tribes would use it to signal the time to start picking wild strawberries, according to Farmer's Almanac. He is also known as Rose Moon, Honey Moon, Mead Moon and Hot Moon.

However, the strawberry moon is not named for its color or any resemblance to the food. It will not look significantly different from any other full moon.

An airplane is flying in front of a full moon. REUTERS / Toby Melville

It's easy to see the full moon everywhere, but if you want a complete night experience, you can better see the night sky if you move away from the light pollution of the city. If you can organize a camping trip, go as far as you can from civilization to get the darkest sky showing the brightest details of a starry night.

The exact peak of the strawberry moon will be at 12:53 pm EST on Friday, according to agitation, but the moon should appear similar to the human eye in fullness at any moment of the night. When the moon is closer to the horizon, it looks larger – but it's just an illusion.

For most months, the full moon only makes an appearance. A second full moon in a month is called a "blue moon". The moon – or at least the way it appears here on earth – goes through phases where it "splits" (appears fuller) and "decreases" (appears less full.)

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It is easy to tell if a moon is growing or decreasing. If you live in the northern hemisphere, remember "DOC:" When the moon looks like a "D", as in the curve is on the right side, it gets closer to the "O" or complete form. When it has the shape of a "C", or the curve is on the left, it moves away from the "O". (Do not listen to the lyrics at the beginning of Crescent moon by Cowboy Junkies – the mnemonic is catchy, but false.)