The almost full sturgeon moon rose near sunset Friday night in the southeast, just below the moonlight-obscured swath of the Milky Way.

The rising moon displayed some lovely yellow-orange color due to being low on the horizon and from a bit of haze from wildfire smoke coming from Canada. WTOP’s weather forecast looked good for Friday night and Saturday night when the almost-full moon rises again in the southeast.

Both nights are definitely a smartphone/camera possibility.

Each month’s full moon has a variety of names associated with it, and the actual full sturgeon moon will peak Saturday at 3:55 a.m. The moon will then be in the southwest sky and may develop that lovely yellow-orange color as it sets a few hours later near sunrise.

Try to watch the moon rise or set as it is near your horizon so you can possibly experience the “moon illusion.” This is quite a beautiful sight to see and experience.

If you are up before dawn the next couple of mornings, Jupiter is visible in the east well before dawn to the lower left of Venus. Each morning the two bright planets will move closer together and on Aug. 12, they will be less than a degree apart and a spellbinding sight. Definitely another smartphone/camera possibility.

Oh, and when looking at the moon, wink at it in remembrance of Neil Armstrong — the first human to walk on the moon.

I’ll be back on Aug. 11 to get you prepped for the Perseid meteor shower. Perseids are hitting our atmosphere now nightly from 11 p.m. local time toward dawn.

Follow Greg Redfern on his daily blog to keep up with the latest news in astronomy and space exploration.