JACKSON, Wyo. — This month’s full “Buck” moon is July 3, the first of four supermoons in 2023.
The moon will appear bigger and brighter in the night sky because it will orbit closer to Earth, 224,895.4 miles to be exact. Two full supermoons occur in August and the final full supermoon of the year will be Sept. 29.
According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, while “supermoon” sounds like the moon is spectacularly large, the full supermoon only appears about seven percent larger than a regular full moon.
The full moon will reach peak fullness at 5:38 a.m. when it is below the horizon but, the moon will likely appear full to the naked eye in the days before and after July 3.
The best time to see the full moon is right after the moonrise when the moon is close to the horizon, appearing biggest and brightest. The moon will rise at 10:06 p.m. on July 3 and 10:52 p.m. on July 4.
According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, July’s full moon is called the Buck Moon because the antlers of male deer—bucks—are growing at this time. Bucks shed and regrow their antlers each year, producing larger antlers as they age.
In Wyoming, July is antler growing season for deer, elk and moose.
Other names for the July full moon also reference animals. The Tlingit, a Pacific Northwest tribe, call July’s full moon “xaat disi” meaning “Salmon Moon,” a term indicating the season when salmon return to an area to spawn. The Wishram call the July full moon the “salmon go up rivers in a group moon” and the Haida of Alaska call it the “chiin kungáay” also meaning “the salmon moon.”
Other names for the full moon reference the summer season and the weather that comes with it. The Newe (Shoshone), who lived across the Great Basin, Nevada and Wyoming, call July’s full moon “daza-mea'” meaning “summer,” which is finally ringing true this season in Jackson after a wet and cold June. The Western Abenaki call it the “Thunder Moon” and the Anishinaabe call it the “Halfway Summer Moon,” referring to the stormy weather and summer season.
“Plants are also featured prominently in July’s Moon names,” says the Almanac. “Some of our favorites are ‘Berry Moon’ (Anishinaabe), ‘Moon When the Chokecherries are Ripe’ (Santee), ‘Month of the Ripe Corn Moon’ (Ani’-Yun’wiya’), and ‘Raspberry Moon’ (Anishnabe).”
