Rare Strawberry Moon On First Day Of Summer

By Kara Seymour (Patch Staff)

Monday, June 20 is the first day of summer. Hot temperatures, which are expected this week, should not come as a surprise.

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In addition to the heat, the days will be long. In Rhode Island, the day is expected to be 15 hours 12 minutes long, the sun rising at 5:10 a.m. and setting at 8:23 p.m., according to The Old Farmer's Almanac.
To top it off, a rare "Strawberry Moon" will be on display in the night sky Monday. A Strawberry Moon has an amber glow and is very low, according to experts.

"The Sun gets super high so this Moon must be super-low. Even at its loftiest at 1 AM, it’s downright wimpy-low. This forces its light through thicker air, which also tends to be humid this time of year, and the combination typically makes it amber colored," according to an explanation in the Old Farmer's Almanac.

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A Strawberry Moon coinciding with the first day of summer is uncommon, last occurring in 1967, according to the Washington Post. The astronomical event will be live-streamed by Slooh.com.