Naming July's Full Moon "Apollo Moon" in Honor of the First Moon Landing
July 2013 :
It's really hard to believe, but next July, 2014, marks the 45th anniversary of the first men on the Moon. For those of us able to remember watching this riveting sight, it was to be the first of not only visits by NASA astronauts, but the first of private enterprise, as we waited for the next step, "colonization," and the ability for all to be able to set foot on our nearest neighbor, allowing us to observe the Earth as only a small number of people had.
But, as we all know, that wasn't the aim of the Apollo mission - it was more a test of which country had the better technology. And we, the U.S., won. Now, over forty years since the last set of explorers walked on the Moon's surface, many of the younger generation are unaware of the incredible feat performed in the 1960s, to the point that they can't imagine ever leaving Earth. How sad.
Every month, the Farmer's Almanac gives us many names for the Full Moon, from Strawberry in June to mark the abundance of the fruit, to the traditional Harvest and Hunter as the fall season commences. The Moon names are traditional, coming mainly from our survival roots. But, why shouldn't we name a monthly Full Moon to commemorate what to the "baby boomers" was the adventure to end all adventures? Especially now, as we have lost Neil Armstrong, the first man to place his boots on the Moon, we should try our best to recall the Fantastic Voyage of the last century. Skyscrapers, Inc., should lead the field in the push to name the July Full Moon the Apollo Moon.
