By Payton Tholstrup
Photo courtesy of Canva
The last full moon of spring will reach its peak illumination at 2:44 am central time on Wednesday, June 11th. Nicknamed the Strawberry Moon, the name comes from Indigenous tribes that live in the northeastern United States, according to the Farmer’s Almanac. The Ojibwe, Dakota, and Lakota peoples have used this moon to mark the ripening of “June-bearing” strawberries that are ready to be harvested. Despite its name, the Strawberry Moon doesn’t typically appear pink or red.
This full moon has another unique characteristic this year – it will be very low. This is due to a phenomenon known as a Major Lunar Standstill. This means the moon is at its northernmost or southernmost point.
According to Earth Sky, the cycle happens because the moon’s orbit is slowly dragged around (mostly due to the pull of the sun) every 18.6 years. This year’s Major Lunar Standstill occurred in January of 2025 and is still affecting the path for this month’s full moon.
This is the first Major Lunar Standstill that has happened in decades. The last one occurred in 2006.
