July’s full moon will be unique for 2025. What to know about the ‘Buck moon’ and ‘Thunder moon’

July’s full moon is just around the corner, and this full moon is unique for 2025.

That’s because this full moon comes less than one week after Earth reached what is known as aphelion, or the part of its orbit where it is farthest from the sun. That means this full moon will mark the farthest from the sun in 2025, according to Space.com.

So when will you be able to see it?

The full moon will rise at 3:37 p.m. CT on July 10, according to Time and Date, but that’s not the time you’ll want to look for it. Viewers will actually want to look towards the southeast after sunset to watch it rise.

Shortly after moonrise will be the best time for viewing, Space.com reported, as the moon will appear larger than it actually is due to the “Moon Illusion,” a phenomenon that occurs when the moon is close to the horizon.

The July full moon actually has multiple names.

The “Buck Moon,” because July is typically the time when a male deer’s antlers grow in North America, and the “Thunder Moon,” referencing July’s notorious summer storms in parts of the U.S.

According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, the moon has a number of alternate names as well.

Some include Feather Moulting Moon, Salmon Moon, Berry Moon, Raspberry Moon, Halfway Summer Moon and more.

According to Space.com, the July full moon follows the summer solstice, which is when the sun is at its highest and the moon follows a lower path, but that “effect is even more extreme in 2025.”

It’s all thanks to something called a “Major Lunar Standstill,” which only happens every 18.6 years.

The phenomenon marks a time “when the sun’s gravity drags the moon’s tilted orbit into its most extreme inclination relative to Earth’s celestial equator,” Space.com reported, causing the moon to appear particularly low in the Earth’s sky this time of year.

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