Everyone knows that April showers bring May flowers, but what about the May Flower Moon?
The Flower Moon will peak on Friday, May 1, at 1:23 p.m. ET, according to the Farmers’ Almanac. While it’ll peak in the afternoon on the East Coast, it will still look bright and beautiful Friday night, and for a couple of nights after.
Here’s what to know about the Flower Moon.
When are the May full moons?
May has two full moons, and the first one, the Flower Moon, rises May 1.
The second, called a blue moon, rises on May 31 at 4:45 a.m. ET, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac.
When can you see the Flower Moon?
The Flower Moon will peak May 1 at 1:23 p.m. ET, according to the Farmers’ Almanac. While it peaks in the afternoon, the moon will still look full at night and for a few days after.
What is Cincinnati’s weather forecast for the May 1 full moon?
What’s the weather forecast for Cincinnati during the first May full moon? It may be a rainy night with potential cloud cover, which may obscure full moon viewing.
Cincinnati will have a chance of showers and thunderstorms Friday. It will be partly sunny with a high near 61 degrees. The chance of precipitation is 40%, according to the National Weather Service.
The second May full moon, a blue moon, will also be a micromoon
You may have heard of a supermoon − we witnessed three supermoons last year. But have you heard of a micromoon?
The Flower Moon, appearing on May 1, will be at its regular full-moon size. But the blue moon at the end of the month will appear smaller than usual.
A micromoon is the opposite of a supermoon. May’s second full moon will occur just before apogee, the point at which the moon is farthest from Earth, according to Old Farmer’s Almanac. When the full moon appears, the moon will look smaller and dimmer than usual.
How often does a blue moon occur?
Blue moons are not all that uncommon, occurring every 2-3 years, according to Royal Museums Greenwich. May 2027 and December 2028 will also bring blue moons, according to RMG.
What phase of the lunar cycle is the moon in now?
As of April 30, the moon is 13 days old in the waxing gibbous phase with 98% illumination according to Space.com.
The moon’s phases in May are:
How did the Flower Moon get its name?
You might assume the May full moon is called that because it’s spring, and you’re right − many flowers are blooming.
The nickname Flower Moon has also been attributed to the Algonquin peoples, a Native American tribe, according to Old Farmer’s Almanac.
The second May full moon, the blue moon, isn’t named after the color of the moon. The truth is, it wasn’t named after anything, but became a trend after a mistake was printed in a 1946 issue of Sky & Telescope Magazine, according to Old Farmer’s Almanac.
List of full moons in 2026
The moon will be full on the following dates, according to the Farmers’ Almanac:
USA TODAY reporter Julia Gomez contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: May’s first full moon is tonight. When to see the Flower Moon
Reporting by Kaycee Sloan and Mariyam Muhammad, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
