On the heels of the exciting Perseid meteor shower, the public will be graced with another thrilling night sky moment. On Monday evening, you’ll have more of a reason than usual to gaze up at the sky, as August’s rare super blue moon will take center stage for the pleasure of photographers, astronomers, and casual viewers.
Here's what to know about the celestial event:
A super blue moon is simultaneously a full moon, blue moon, and a super moon.
The first of these three is pretty well known to us: a phase in the lunar cycle in which the Earth, sun, and moon are aligned with the Earth in the middle, so the moon is fully illuminated on Earth.
A blue moon is not about the color of the moon, but instead the frequency of the full moon. There are two definitions of a blue moon—the first describes when there are two full moons in a single month. Since the moon’s cycle is 29.5 days, and our average calendar month is 30-31 days, it is incredibly rare to have two full moons in one single month, but it is possible, happening every two to three years, according to NASA. Around 3% of full moons are blue moons.
There are also seasonal blue moons, in which a calendar season contains four full moons instead of the usual three, and the blue moon is the third of the four full moons. August’s full moon is of this variety. The next seasonal blue moon is expected in May 2027.
The super moon part refers to the moon's orbit, which brings it slightly closer to Earth this month, making it appear bigger and brighter. This occurs since the moon’s orbit around the Earth is elliptical instead of just a circle, and thus there are times when the moon is further and closer to our planet.
During the moon’s closest approach to Earth, it can appear approximately 14% larger and shine 30% brighter than when at its farthest point in the orbit. This will be the first of four consecutive super moons this year, and it is less rare than the blue moon, occurring three or four times a year.
August’s full moon is often called the Sturgeon moon, dubbed by the Algonquin Native American tribe living in the Great Lakes area and throughout what is now known as the northeastern United States. They named the full moon after sturgeons—a type of large fish—which were most plentiful in the lakes during the month of August.
The full moon's peak will occur on Monday afternoon, according to NASA, at 2:26 p.m. EDT and 11:26 a.m. PT. It will appear for three days, from Sunday morning until early Wednesday morning.
According to NASA, the combination of the super moon and the blue moon is rare, and the time between their occurrences is quite “irregular” and could be as much as 20 years, with 10 years between the average.
Though we had a super blue moon somewhat recently, in August 2023, NASA predicts the next super blue moons will occur in January and March 2037. All the more reason to make sure you don’t miss 2024’s offering.
