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Celebrate the Full Moon of April—also called the Pink Moon. Enjoy the facts, folklore, and more!

Pink Moon Show

Enjoy our show below about April’s Full Moon. Janice Stillman, editor of The Old Farmer’s Almanac, and Bob Berman, Almanac astronomer, partner with Slooh to look through their mighty telescope—it’s the same as if you’re looking through the lens, too! We’ll explore the meaning of the Pink Moon and take a look at the smallest Full Moon of the year, as the Earth and Moon move to their furthest points from each other—a “mini” Pink Moon, if you will. (And, no, it is NOT really colored pink!) Watch the show below.

April Full Moon Names

April’s Full Moon, the Full Pink Moon, heralds the appearance of the moss pink, or wild ground phlox—one of the first spring flowers. It is also known as the Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon, and the Fish Moon.

These names were not invented by The Old Farmer’s Almanac. They were used by early Colonial Americans—who learned the names from the local Native Americans; time was not recorded by using the months of the Julian or Gregorian calendar. Many tribes kept track of time by observing the seasons and lunar months, although there was much variability. The name itself usually described some activity that occurred during that time in their location.

See the full year of Full Moon names and their meanings.

Moon Phases for April 2016

All dates and times are ET. See the Moon Phase Calendar for your city/state.

New Moon: April 7, 7:24 A.M.

First Quarter: April 13, 11:59 P.M.

     

Full Moon: April 22, 1:24 A.M.

 

Last Quarter: April 29, 11:29 P.M.

All dates and times in above chart are ET. See our Moon Phase Calender for your city/state.
For your next full Moon, see our Full Moon Dates chart.

April Best Days 2016

Below are the Best Days for activities, based on the Moon’s sign and phase in April.

For Planting:

• Aboveground crops: 12, 13
• Belowground crops: 4, 5, 23

For Setting Eggs:

• 1, 19, 20, 28-30

For Fishing:

• 7-22

See Best Days for more activities.

Full Pink Moon Video

Each month, we will explain the traditional names of the full Moon along with some interesting and insightful Moon facts. Click below to watch the video.

April Moon Facts and Folklore

A full Moon in April brings frost. If the full Moon rises pale, expect rain.

• On April 20, 1972, the lunar module of Apollo XVI landed on the moon with astronauts John Young and Charles Duke aboard. Thomas Mattingly remained in orbit around the moon aboard the command module. 

• One day later, on April 21, 1972, Apollo XVI astronauts John Young and Charles Duke drove an electric car on the surface of the moon. It’s still up there along with some expensive tools and some film that they forgot.

• The period from the Full Moon through the last quarter of the Moon is the best time for killing weeds, thinning, pruning, mowing, cutting timber, and planting below-ground crops.

Share your thoughts about this month’s Moon below!