June 20, 2024
Some stars end in silence, some in fire, and some leave behind the raw materials for birthdays.
Sandy and the Moon Halo
Birthday · June 20, 2024
A little universe, just for you
Your date.
Ready to give.
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APOD published June 20, 2024. Credit: Marcella Giulia Pace. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
Last April's Full Moon shines through high clouds near the horizon, casting shadows in this garden-at-night skyscape. Along with canine sentinel Sandy watching the garden gate, the wide-angle snapshot also captured the bright Moon's 22 degree ice halo. But June's bright Full Moon will cast shadows too. This month, the Moon's exact full phase occurs at 01:08 UTC June 22. That's a mere 28 hours or so after today's June solstice (at 20:51 UTC June 20), the moment when the Sun reaches its maximum northern declination. Known to some as a Strawberry Moon, June's Full Moon is at its southernmost declination, and of course will create its own 22 degree halos in hazy night skies.
Image credit: Marcella Giulia Pace