The Pink Moon, the fourth full moon of 2024, will shine into the skies this week, illuminating the night sky from Monday to Wednesday (April 22-24). On Tuesday (April 23), the moon will be at its fullest and will be visible in the constellation Virgo, near Spica, one of the 20 brightest stars in the night sky. The best time to catch a glimpse of this stunning celestial event is on April 22 when the moon is at its lowest point just before dawn and coincides with the peak of the Lyrid meteor shower.
The Pink Moon has several Native American names, including Moon of the Red Grass Appearing (Oglala), Sprouting Grass Moon (Tlingit), Moon of Blackberry (Choctaw), Flower Moon (Cherokee), and Moon of the Big Leaves (Apache). It also goes by other names such as Breaking Ice Moon, Budding Moon, Awakening Moon, and Egg Moon. In Judaism, it is known as the Passover Moon because it marks the first day of the Jewish festival of Passover (Pesach) or Paschal Moon which is associated with Easter celebrations.
The Pink Moon gets its name from blooming flowers this time of year and offers some surprisingly pink views during a rare celestial event when many skywatchers witnessed it during a total solar eclipse on April 8th. During this unique moment in history, while blocking out most of sunlight for almost four minutes in North America, many viewers were able to see a rare sight: a pink moon that was visible for up to three minutes during peak eclipse time.
