Blue Moon 2012: Skywatchers To Enjoy Two Full Moons In August
Want to see a blue moon? Well, that might not happen this month but you will be able to see two full moons in August.
According to the Huffington Post, the term “blue moon” doesn’t actually refer to the color of the moon. Instead, the term is used to describe the second full moon of any given month. In August, there will be a full moon on August 1st and another on August 31st.
Space.com reports that some people also use the term “blue moon” to describe a season with four moons.
“Normally there are 12 fully lit, or full, moons per year. A season of three months should therefore contain three full moons…. On occasions where there are four full moons in a season instead of three, the third of the full moons is traditionally called a Blue Moon.”
Having two full moons in a month is a pretty rare occurrence, which is why the term “once in a blue moon” aptly applies to something that does not occur very often. According to the Fox News, however, Blue Moons are more common than you may think.
A blue moon occurs about every 2.66 years.
The next time we will see two full moons in one month will occur in July 2015. The last time it happened was in June 2011.
