May 1: Flower Moon
May with have not one, but two Full Moons, making this an extra special month. On May 1, the Full Flower Moon with reach peak illumination at 1:23 P.M. Then, on May 31, the Blue Moon will be at its peak at 4:45 A.M. While traditionally the Full Moon in May is known as the Full Flower Moon, other names for this Full Moon point ahead to warmer weather, including the Budding Moon, the Planting Moon, and the Shedding Pony Moon.
May 31: Blue Moon
With the cycle of the phases of the Moon lasting approximately one month, and there being 12 months in a year, we typically have 12 full moons each year. However, the phases of the Moon actually take 29.5 days to complete, meaning 354 days total for 12 full cycles. This falls some way short of the 365/366 days in a calendar year: therefore, roughly every two and a half years a 13th full moon is seen. This additional full moon does not fit with the normal naming scheme and so is instead referred to as a ‘blue moon’.
Images courtesy of Old Farmer's Alamanac
May 6: Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower
The Eta Aquarid meteor shower will peak early in the morning of May 6, potentially producing up to 50 meteors per hour in ideal conditions. However, the waning gibbous Moon will wash out many of these meteors. According to NASA, The Eta Aquarids are known for their speed, with the meteors traveling at about 148,000 mph into Earth’s atmosphere. Fast meteors can leave glowing "trains" (incandescent bits of debris in the wake of the meteor) which last for several seconds to minutes. Meteor showers can be caused by either comets or asteroids. The Eta Aquarids originate from debris left by Halley’s Comet, the same comet that produces the Orionids in October.
Image courtesy of Stellarium
May 18: Moon near Venus
On May 18, the 8%-illuminated Moon will be close to Venus (mag -3.9) in the constellation Taurus. The distance between the objects will be 2°56'. Both dazzling Venus and the Moon’s thin crescent will be visible to the naked eye, so look for them about 60 minutes after sunset.
Image courtesy of Stellarium
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