• Published

The July full Moon, also known as the Buck Moon, illuminated the sky over the UK on Wednesday night.

Skygazers captured stunning photos of the celestial display - which reached its peak at 15:36 BST - after the skies darkened.

The Buck Moon marks the second of three full Moons this summer.

The next chance to see one will be in the end of August, as the Sturgeon Moon rises as the final full Moon of season.

Why is it called a Buck Moon?

As with the other full Moons across the year, it gets its name from events happening in nature around the same time.

Historically, full Moons have been given nicknames to help people keep track of time and monitor the changing seasons.

The July full Moon gets its name from the time of year when male deer, or bucks, rapidly grow a new set of antlers.

The Royal Observatory in Greenwich also refers to this Moon as the Thunder Moon, due to the summer storms that often happen in this month.

When is the next full Moon?

Following the Buck Moon, there is just one more opportunity to spot a full Moon during meteorological summer.

The Sturgeon Moon - named after the freshwater fish caught by Native Americans in the Great Lakes, will rise on 28 August.

Meteorological autumn then begins on 1 September.