Overview
- The Buck Moon reaches peak fullness at about 10:36 a.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday, July 29, but the Moon will look fully round to most people during local moonrise the evenings of July 28 and 29.
- The name 'Buck Moon' comes from northeastern Native American seasonal naming practices that mark the time when male deer grow new antlers.
- Two meteor showers, the Delta Aquariids and the Alpha Capricornids, are active around July 30–31 and the Moon’s brightness will drown out many fainter meteors so observers should face away from the Moon or use horizon masking to improve contrast.
- Viewing will depend on local conditions: forecasts predict largely clear skies for central, southern and eastern England on the night of July 29, while smoke from Canadian wildfires could redden or orange-tint the Moon for people in parts of the U.S. Northeast and Upper Midwest.
- The Buck Moon sits in a busy summer sky calendar as a lead‑in to the Perseids peak in mid‑August and the total solar eclipse on Aug. 12 that will be visible from eastern Greenland, western Iceland and northern Spain.