April skygazing: A pink micromoon, the Lyrid meteor shower, and more
The solar system's large adult son will be particularly bright in early April, blazing in the western sky in close proximity to the waxing crescent moon. Both will be visible in the same region as the constellation Taurus, around 30° from the horizon. On April 1, the moon will hover above the Pleiades, also known as the 'Seven Sisters' in Greek mythology and, in Japan, as 'Subaru'. If you've ever wondered about the provenance of the car company Subaru's logo, now you know.
The start of April provides an opportunity to take a look at a galaxy far, far away: Messier 94. It is located about 17 million light years from us in the constellation Canes Venatici. This spiral galaxy is known informally as the 'Croc's Eye' or 'Cat's Eye,' for reasons that will become clear if you get out your telescope or a set of good binoculars while it's at its highest point in the sky this year.
In North America, the galaxy will become visible 41° above the north-eastern horizon at around 8:30 p.m. EDT, and continue rising until it's almost directly above around midnight. It will then sink towards the northwestern horizon as the day approaches.
The Hubble Space Telescope has taken some spectacular images of Messier 94 over the years. While you're not going to see anything like this from Earth, it's still fascinating to be able to see the same object with your own eyes!
There's nothing quite as dramatic as last month's blood moon this time around, but Nick Drake fans can rejoice, because April is the month of the Pink Moon. As per the Farmer's Almanac, this month's full moon takes its name from the vibrant pink flowers of Phlox subulata, or 'moss pink,' which comes into full bloom this month.
[ Related: How the blood moon gets its ghoulish hue. ]
Native American culture provides several additional names for April's full moon.The Oneida call it 'Wasakayutese' ('It's Thundering Moon') and in the language of the Catawba nation it's 'YitAruwakrere Nuti' ('Bear a Child Moon'). The Anishinaabemowin language of the Ojibwe provides multiple monikers, including 'Bobookwedaagime-giizis' ('Snowshoe Breaking Moon') and 'Maango-giizis' ('Loon Moon').
And that's not all! This month's full moon is also notable for being a micromoon. The moon's elliptical orbit means that its distance from the Earth varies throughout the year.This month finds the moon at its apogee, which means that it's as far away from us as it gets. The opposite scenario, when the moon is at its perigee, is called a supermoon.The next supermoon is not until November, so stay patient.
It's meteor shower time! The 2025 installment of the annual Lyrid meteor shower is predicted to begin on April 21, peaking in the late afternoon of April 22. This isn't far out from the full moon, which tends to make seeing other celestial objects difficult, so the best time to look for meteors will be when the moon's not around. The Adler Planetarium and the Farmer's Almanac both suggest the early hours of April 22. The moon rises at 3:32 a.m. CDT that morning, so you'll either have to stay up late or get up unconscionably early to catch the show.
As always, you'll get the best experience if you get away from any sources of light pollution—and you check out our stargazing tips before you head off into the darkness.
Until next month!
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