April’s Pink Moon Rises as Artemis II Window Opens

April’s full pink moon will peak around 10:11 p.m. ET, a name honoring Phlox subulata’s spring bloom rather than the moon’s color, with observers urged to view in clear skies; the timing coincides with NASA’s Artemis II launch window (April 1–6) in which four astronauts will orbit the Moon rather than land. The piece also notes Indigenous names for the moon and upcoming meteor showers (the Lyrids in April and the Eta Aquariids in May), as space enthusiasts anticipate spring skies and deep-space missions.