Tickled pink! What you need to know about April’s full moon

Astrophiles and skygazers are in for a treat this week as April’s full moon – also known as the Pink Moon – rises in the sky.

Thursday evening is the best time to watch as the full moon will reach peak illumination between 6pm and 7pm on 6 April.

April’s Pink Moon

April’s full moon is also known by many other names within the Native American tribes in the region.

Is it really a pink?

Sadly, no, it’s not really pink. The name comes from the Phlox subulata, or ‘moss pink’ wildflower native to eastern North America.^[1]

Since it’s early springtime in the northern hemisphere, the wildflowers are in full bloom, hence the name.

*_{An aeroplane is pictured against the Pink Moon in Iraq’s southern city of Basra, on 25 April 2021. Photo: AFP/Hussein Faleh}*

The Algonquin tribe refers to it as Breaking Ice Moon, while it is known as the ‘Moon When The Streams Are Again Navigable’ by the Dakota tribe.

Names such as “Budding Moon of Plants and Shrubs” (Tlingit) and “Moon of the Red Grass Appearing” (Oglala) speak to the blooming plant growth in April.

Paschal: An Easter treat

A Paschal moon is the first full moon in spring (again, in the northern hemisphere since we in the southern hemisphere are entering the autumn equinox).

Paschal also means Easter is the first Sunday following the full moon, which will fall on Sunday, 9 April, this year.^[2]

The word ‘Paschal’ refers to the Easter celebration and simply means ‘relating to Easter’ or relating to the Jewish Passover’.

Pink moon folklore and facts

In Hinduism, April’s full moon often coincides with the birth of Lord Hanuman, the son of the wind-god Vayu.

*_{Hindu devotees attending the Chithirai Pournami Tiruvizha festival on the day of the full moon in the month of Chithirai in Medan, North Sumatra, on 17 April 2022. Photo: AFP/ANDI}*

Lord Hanuman is considered to be an avatar of Vayu in Sadh Vaishnavism (is a denomination within the Vaishnavism-Bhagavata tradition of Hinduism).

The Pink Moon also has symbolic importance for Muslims since it is observed during the holy month of Ramadan.

And according to folklore, the best time to kill weeds, prune plans, cut timber and plant below-ground crops is the period between the full moon to the last quarter of the moon on 13 April.

References:

^{[1] Full Moon April 2023 – Pink Moon And Alternative Names; Farmer’s Almanac
[2] NASA Solar System Exploration}