Jul.'s full buck moon is arriving
Digest more
Tonight’s full buck moon marks summer's first full moon in the Northern Hemisphere. It will rise opposite Mars, appear orange on the horizon and carve a very low path.
This year, the Buck Moon follows Earth's aphelion, the point in its orbit farthest from the Sun, by just a few days, according to Space.com. That makes it the full moon farthest from the Sun in 2025, a result of orbital geometry rather than distance from Earth.
According to RMG, in the UK you'll be able to see this year's Buck Moon on July 10 at 9.37pm. Similar to last month's strawberry moon, which was the lowest-lying full moon in more than 18 years, July's Buck Moon will also sit unusually low in the sky.
Some plants can photosynthesise using nightglow, traditionally comprising moonlight, starlight and the light reflected from planets. Increasingly, artificial light at night, known as light pollution, contributes to this background illumination.
Skywatchers may have a harder time spotting July's full moon in Iowa. The evening of Wednesday, July 9, is expected to have 50-80% cloud cover across the state with some thunderstorms possible starting in western Iowa around 10 p.m. and moving across the state through the night, according to the National Weather Service.
Explore more
July 2025's Full Moon occurs at exactly 20:39 UTC, or 4:39 p.m. EDT, on the 10th. This view of the Buck Moon was captured by Matt Melnyk on July 13, 2022 from Calgary, Alberta, and uploaded to The Weather Network's UGC gallery.
This full moon earned its name from the frequent thunderstorms that rumble across North America over the course of July.
Experts say July’s full moon could reduce sleep by up to 20 minutes on the evening of the 10th and as much as 90 minutes in the days leading up to and following it. Scientists in Switzerland previously found that, on the night of the full moon, people take on average five more minutes to fall asleep.