'Pink moon' to illuminate night sky on April 23

Prepare to witness the breathtaking illumination of the "pink moon" as it will grace the night sky on April 23 (Tuesday).

According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa), April's full moon will reach its peak illumination at 7:49pm EDT and remain visibly full for three days from Monday morning to Thursday morning.

"This will be on Wednesday from the time zones of the UK, Ireland, and Portugal eastward across Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia to the International Date Line in the mid-Pacific," Nasa said in a statement.

However, the stargazers won't witness a full "pink" moon in the pink colour.

Then why is it called the "pink moon"? Nasa has resolved the mystery for skywatchers.

Native Americans and other people have named the months from natural indications for millennia. Every full moon has a unique name.

Nasa said the Maine Farmers' Almanac "began publishing Indian names for full moons in the 1930s and these names are now widely known and used".

"The tribes of the northeastern United States called this the Pink Moon, named after the herb moss pink, also known as creeping phlox, moss phlox, or mountain phlox, a plant native to the eastern USA that is one of the earliest widespread flowers of spring," it added.

"Other names for this Moon include the Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon, and among coastal tribes the Fish Moon, as this was when the shad swam upstream to spawn," Nasa concluded.

However, the Pink Moon will only appear in the eastern part of the United States and will be accompanied by planets Mars and Saturn.