- 1 May, 15:14 Vilnius time: new moon.
- 9 May, 14:52 Vilnius time: first quarter.
- 16 May, 06:35 Vilnius time: full moon, traditionally the Flower Moon.
- 23 May, 03:30 Vilnius time: last quarter.
- 31 May, 07:19 Vilnius time: new moon.
- During May 2003 the Moon passes through all eight phases. One full cycle takes about 29.5 days.
- The next full moon after this month is on 14 June 2003 (June 2003).
Moon phase times, May 2003
The four principal phases are moments, not whole days. Times are given in UTC and in Europe/Vilnius time.
| Date | Phase | Europe/Vilnius | UTC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 May | New moon | 15:14 | 12:14 |
| Fri 9 May | First quarter | 14:52 | 11:52 |
| Fri 16 May | Full moon · Flower Moon | 06:35 | 03:35 |
| Fri 23 May | Last quarter | 03:30 | 00:30 |
| Sat 31 May | New moon | 07:19 | 04:19 |
The sky: May 2003
Planets and sky events this month, as seen in London. The Moon's phases are in the calendar above.
Planets visible (mid-month)
Events
| Mon 5 May | The Moon near Saturn | About 3.3° apart. Look for Saturn next to the Moon. |
| Mon 5 May | Eta Aquariids meteor shower peak | Up to 50 meteors an hour in a perfect sky. The Moon is 21% lit and will not interfere. |
| Thu 8 May | The Moon near Jupiter | About 4.1° apart. Look for Jupiter next to the Moon. |
| Wed 21 May | The Moon near Mars | About 2.9° apart. Look for Mars next to the Moon. |
| Mon 26 May | Mercury and Venus together | 2.2° apart, but not in a dark sky. |
| Thu 29 May | The Moon near Mercury | About 2.3° apart, but Mercury is not visible that night. |
| Thu 29 May | The Moon near Venus | About 0.1° apart, but Venus is not visible that night. |
How to read the moon calendar
Each day shows its date, the share of the Moon’s disc that is lit at noon, and the Moon’s shape that day. When a full moon, new moon or quarter falls on a day, it is named at the bottom of the cell.
Illumination is the part of the disc lit by the Sun. It grows from new moon to full moon (waxing) and shrinks from full moon to new moon (waning). Each day opens its own page with every signal for that date.
Full moon dates 2003
| Date | Time (UTC) | Traditional name | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 18 Jan | 10:47 | Wolf Moon | passed |
| Mon 17 Feb | 23:51 | Snow Moon | passed |
| Tue 18 Mar | 10:34 | Worm Moon | passed |
| Wed 16 Apr | 19:35 | Pink Moon | passed |
| Fri 16 May | 03:35 | Flower Moon | passed |
| Sat 14 Jun | 11:15 | Strawberry Moon | passed |
| Sun 13 Jul | 19:21 | Buck Moon | passed |
| Tue 12 Aug | 04:48 | Sturgeon Moon | passed |
| Wed 10 Sep | 16:36 | Harvest Moon | passed |
| Fri 10 Oct | 07:27 | Hunter’s Moon | passed |
| Sun 9 Nov | 01:13 | Beaver Moon | passed |
| Mon 8 Dec | 20:36 | Cold Moon | passed |
New moon dates 2003
| Date | Time (UTC) | |
|---|---|---|
| Thu 2 Jan | 20:22 | passed |
| Sat 1 Feb | 10:48 | passed |
| Mon 3 Mar | 02:34 | passed |
| Tue 1 Apr | 19:18 | passed |
| Thu 1 May | 12:14 | passed |
| Sat 31 May | 04:19 | passed |
| Sun 29 Jun | 18:38 | passed |
| Tue 29 Jul | 06:52 | passed |
| Wed 27 Aug | 17:26 | passed |
| Fri 26 Sep | 03:09 | passed |
| Sat 25 Oct | 12:50 | passed |
| Mon 24 Nov | 22:58 | passed |
| Tue 23 Dec | 09:42 | passed |
The eight moon phases explained
Four principal phases are exact instants; the four in between are the days that connect them.
Solar and lunar eclipses in 2003
No eclipse data for 2003.
The waning moon is traditionally a time for finishing
Questions people ask
When is the full moon in May 2003?
The full moon is on 16 May 2003. Its traditional name is the Flower Moon. The exact time is in the table on this page.
When is the new moon in May 2003?
The new moon is on 1 May 2003, 31 May 2003. The Moon can’t be seen that night: it sits between Earth and the Sun with its lit side turned away.
What do the percentages mean?
They show how much of the Moon’s disc is lit at noon. 0% is new moon, 100% is full moon and 50% is a quarter.
Why does another calendar give a different date?
A phase is a moment. When it falls near midnight, the date can differ by one day between time zones. This calendar uses Europe/Vilnius time for the days.
How often is there a full moon?
About every 29.5 days. Some months have two; the second is called a Blue Moon.
- Jean Meeus, Astronomical Algorithms, 2nd ed., Willmann-Bell, 1998, chapters 48 and 49.
- NASA Eclipse Web Site (eclipse dates and visibility).
Numbers update through the day from public sources. The text for each day is written from that day’s data and checked by the editor. Every past day keeps its own page in the archive.