Full moon

June’s full moon happened at 04:41 this morning, the instant when the waxing moon ended and waning began.

This full moon, which shares its month with the solstice, is called the rose moon in Europe and the strawberry moon in North America, apparently for no other reason than June’s being the season for strawberries and roses. Despite these prosy names, the full moon has inspired myth, legend and ritual since prehistory.

There are claims that the full moon can disturb sleep and alter the mood and behaviour of both people and animals. In the 18th century in England, people found guilty of murder could claim the full moon as mitigating circumstances and appeal for a lesser sentence, and it is still believed in many societies that the moon influences female fertility.

It is a time that folklore associates with insanity, magic and transformation, when werewolves roam the forest and standing in the moonlight is asking for the sort of trouble that comes with faeries and goblins. 

There is no scientific evidence for any of these beliefs but, as the USA initiates a congressional enquiry into decades of UFO sightings, we need to remember that unproven is not the same thing as disproven. When a study appears to find evidence, it’s not long before another study contradicts it; for instance, research in a large UK hospital found that incidences of dog bites doubled during a full moon but public hospitals in Australia, over the same time period, found dog bites were less likely when the moon was full.

It will be 29.5 days, a synodic month, before July’s full moon on the 3rd at 12:38pm.