July full moon is the Buck Moon and a supermoon

When to watch in 2023: Overnight of July 2-3.
Where to look: Look for the bright round moon in the east today at evening, highest in the sky around midnight, and in the west before sunrise tomorrow morning.
Crest of the full moon falls at 11:39 UTC (6:39 a.m. CDT) on July 3. So, if you live in either North or South America, your fullest moon hangs somewhere above the western horizon just before sunrise tomorrow morning.

All full moons rise along the eastern horizon near sunset, and set along the western horizon near sunrise. They are visible all night. At full moon, the sun, Earth and moon are aligned in space, with Earth in the middle. The moon’s day side – its fully lighted hemisphere – directly faces us. That’s why the moon appears full. Note that the moon will look full and round the day before and the day after it reaches its fullest.

It’s the Buck Moon

All the full moons have names. Popular nicknames for the July full moon include the Feather Molting Moon and the Salmon Moon, but Buck Moon is the most common. At this time of year, the antlers of male deer grow rapidly, sometimes to impressive sizes. Hence, the name Buck Moon. Some Native Americans used the names Thunder Moon, Berry Moon and Raspberry Moon.

Read more: Full moon names by month and by season

Read more: Traditional full moon names and their meanings

It’s also a Supermoon

Also, this July’s full moon is a supermoon because it occurs near its closet orbital point to Earth. Does a supermoon appear larger than ordinary full moons?

While it’s true experienced observers do say they can detect a difference, you’d have to be a very keen observer to notice it. Truly, most of us can’t tell any difference in the size of a supermoon and an ordinary full moon.

But … do supermoons look brighter than ordinary full moons? Yes! By a noticeable amount. That’s because a supermoon exceeds the disk size of an average-sized moon by up to 8% and the brightness of an average-sized full moon by some 16%. And then, it exceeds the disk size of a micro-moon (a year’s most distant and therefore smallest full moon) up to 14% and the brightness of a micro-moon by some 30%. So, if you go outside on the night of July 2-3, there’s the potential you’ll notice the supermoon is exceptionally bright!

July full moon is in Sagittarius in 2023

The July full moon can lie in front of two constellations of the zodiac. The most often one is Sagittarius the Archer. The second is the constellation to Sagittarius’ east, Capricornus the Sea Goat. This full moon glows in front of the central part of the Teapot asterism. Because of the bright moonlight, the eight stars comprising the Teapot will be difficult to see with the unaided eye.

This July full moon mimics December sun

Because a full moon more or less stays opposite the sun, the full moon’s nighttime path mimics the sun’s daytime path from six months ago, or six months hence.

This full moon is the one closest to the June solstice – happening twelve days after it – so this full moon follows nearly the same path across the sky as the December solstice sun. The December solstice is the Northern Hemisphere’s winter solstice. So, the moon’s trek on the nights around this July’s full moon resembles the low path of the winter solstice sun.

North of the Arctic Circle, the wintertime sun never climbs above the horizon. Neither will this July’s full moon.

Meanwhile, in the Southern Hemisphere, the moon’s path across the sky will mirror that of the high summer solstice sun.

And, south of the Antarctic Circle, the moon will be out for 24 hours around the clock, simulating the midnight sun of summer.

Arc of the July full moon, Northern Hemisphere

The moon’s arc across our sky varies from month to month and from season to season. Every full moon rises somewhere along the eastern horizon, opposite the sun as it sets in the west. And every full moon arcs across the sky throughout the night and sets along the western horizon around dawn. For us in the Northern Hemisphere, in most years the arc of the June’s full moon is lower than the paths of the full moons since December. However, this year, the July 3rd full moon arcs slightly lower because it falls closer to the June solstice than the June 4th full moon.

Arc of the July full moon, Southern Hemisphere

For those in the Southern Hemisphere, the full moon’s arc across the sky is climbing higher with each successive month since December, reaching its highest at the full moon falling closest to the June solstice, which occurs sometime from mid-June through early July. In 2023, even though the June 4th full moon is close to the solstice, the July 3rd full moon is closer.

Bottom line: The July full moon – the Buck Moon – falls overnight tonight, reaching its fullest at 11:39 UTC (that’s 6:39 a.m. CDT) tomorrow night. It’s also a supermoon.