Last night revealed spring's first full moon that lasts for three days, where some call it the "pink moon" however, those who are planning to see the moon tonight might be surprised to notice that this month's full moon is not really, well, pink.

Last fall, the "blood moon" appeared in a rare event, however this so-called pink moon can also be seen every year. The pink moon was first coined by native Americans as they celebrate this event of the yearly blooms of the pink phlox, an iconic spring flower. During this spring full moon, some may also call it the fish moon or egg moon.  

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Native American tribes such as the Algonquins who thrived in New England dubbed the full moon as such to indicate the changing seasons. Since they do not follow the Julian or Gregorian system, they tracked these lunar changes to monitor the passage of time. Upon the arrival of the first American colonizers, they established contact with these tribes and adopted these full moon names for every season.  

The moon last night and tonight will not appear pink in color but it will look smaller than usual. This is caused by the distance of the moon and the Earth, indicating that this time is the farthest distance between the two planetary bodies from each other, or as astronomers call this, the apogee. Supermoons in contrast occur during perigee, when the moon is as its closest point to the planet during its orbit.

One lunar month is approximately 30 days when the moon begins from its apogee point and returns back to its apogee again. A full moon can also appear very bright, especially when the sun shines directly on it where the Earth is in between. 

During other seasons and times of the year, the full moon may also appear different every time, gaining special nicknames. In May, this is known as the full flower moon since this event heralds warmer temperatures and sunnier, balmier days ahead, which is a good time to plant flowers along with other crops. In June however, the full moon is known as the full strawberry moon, since this month is the ideal time for berry harvesting.