Did you miss the full Buck moon? Enjoy Friday's moon illusion thanks to Louisville's clearer skies

Yahoo

10 hours ago

If you missed Thursday's full Buck moon shining over Louisville, not to worry! Friday night's moon will be shining at 99% illumination, according to NASA.
Louisville residents also should have a fairly good view of the moon thanks to mostly clear skies, which can help with experiencing the "Moon Illusion."
Here's what Kentucky skywatchers should know.
Story continues after photo gallery.
According to the Old Farmer's Almanac, moonrise for the Louisville area will happen by roughly 10:11 p.m. Friday, July 11, crossing the meridian at 2:12 a.m. before setting at 6:56 a.m. Saturday.
You can check moonrise and moonset times for your zip code by visiting the Old Farmer's Almanac online.
There's something neat that happens when the full moon is closer to the horizon; it looks HUGE. Especially when you glimpse it poking out above a treeline, mountains, buildings or bodies of water. But here's the thing: It's an optical illusion.
The full moon isn't larger when it's near the horizon any more than when it's positioned directly overhead, writes NASA. Our brain tricks us into thinking the moon is bigger because of how we perceive its depth in relation to the other objects around it. This phenomenon is known as the "Moon Illusion."
You can prove the illusion for yourself by changing the way you look at the moon:
First, look at the full moon normally when it's close to the horizon. Next, gaze at it through a cardboard tube, blocking out everything except the moon.
Or try looking at the full moon while upside down, which can be done if you bend over and look back between your legs, or, if you've got it in your yard, leaning over backwards while seated on a swing.
In either case, the moon won't appear as big as it once seemed.
July's full moon is going to appear lower on the horizon. The reason is that the Earth is in the midst of "a major lunar standstill," which has to do with the moon's orbit around the Earth.
"It's all about the inclination of the moon's orbit, which undergoes an 18.6-year cycle," writes EarthSky's John Jardine Goss. "The cycle happens because the moon's orbit is being slowly dragged around — mostly due to the pull of the sun — every 18.6 years."
Skies around the Louisville area are expected to be mostly clear Friday night with lows around 75 in the evening, according to the National Weather Service.
Thursday, July 10 is when the full Buck Moon charges its way into the night sky, according to NASA. The moon's phases in July 2025 are:
🌓 First Quarter: July 2.
🌕 Full Moon: July 10.
🌗 Last Quarter: July 18.
🌑 New Moon: July 24.
A male deer, or buck's antlers were in full growth mode around this time in July, writes the Old Farmer's Almanac. Other names for July's full moon from Native American tribes include the Salmon Moon, Thunder Moon, and Halfway Summer Moon.
You may have noticed the moon occasionally takes on a dramatic shade of orange or red in the night sky. That's because of how sunlight strikes the moon's surface after passing through our atmosphere.
When the moon moves into the inner part of Earth's shadow, or umbra, according to NASA, some of the sunlight entering Earth's skies scatters before reaching the moon's surface.
Colors with shorter wavelengths, such as blues and violets, scatter more easily than colors with longer wavelengths, which include red and orange. The more dust or clouds in Earth's atmosphere during a lunar eclipse, the redder the moon appears.
The Milky Way can best be viewed somewhere far away from bright city lights. Find a dark, safe spot out in the country where you can see more stars in the sky.
If possible, head to Mammoth Cave National Park, roughly 90 miles south of Louisville, which is an International Dark Sky location and therefore a great place for stargazing. According to NASA, traces of the Milky Way will appear as a "faint, cloud-like band arching across the sky toward the south."
If you plan on observing the sky this month, writes NASA, keep the following dates in mind for July 2025:
July 21 & 22 – Moon, Venus & Jupiter – You can find the crescent moon and the planet Venus toward the east in the morning sky. With a clear view toward the horizon you can also spot Jupiter low in the sky.
July 28 – Moon & Mars – The crescent Moon appears right next to Mars after sunset.
All month – Constellation: Aquila – You can spot the Eagle constellation, Aquila, in the eastern part of the sky during the first half of the night, writes NASA. Its brightest star, Altair, is the southernmost star in the Summer Triangle, which is an easy-to-locate star pattern in Northern Hemisphere summer skies.
All month – Milky Way core: The bright central bulge of our home galaxy, the Milky Way, is visible all night through August. It is best observed from dark sky locations far from bright city lights, and appears as a faint, cloud-like band arching across the sky toward the south.
The following free astronomy apps can help you locate stars, planets, and constellations.
SkyView Lite for iPhone | Google Play
Star Walk 2 for iPhone | Google Play
Star Chart for iPhone | Google Play
for iPhone | Google Play
The full Sturgeon Moon should reach peak illumination by Saturday, Aug. 9, 2025.
When is the next full moon?: Dates for every one in 2025 and what time you can see them.
John Tufts covers trending news for IndyStar and Midwest Connect. Send him a news tip at [e-mail]. Find him on BlueSky at JohnWritesStuff.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Missed Thursday's full Buck moon? You can still enjoy the moon illusion