Next Blue Moon?

[gd55]

Anyone know when the next Blue Moon will occur? --gd

[OzEclipse]

Blue Moons are an atmospheric phenomena which occur when large volumes of aerosols are produced and travel high into the atmosphere. Usually this is when there is an enormous forest fire or huge volcanic eruption. This requires even bigger fires than some of the worst in Australia in the past decade. As such, they can't be predicted.

The calendar based definition(s) of two in a month, 4 in a quarter etc are a false construct that have arisen from an incorrect reference or use in print the 1940's.

cheers

Joe

[mithrandir]

Joe, I hope that was tounge in cheek. Calling some full moons a "Blue Moon" goes back long before 1946.

There's the ecclesiastical version where a fourth full moon before the March equinox could lead people to celebrate Easter on the wrong date, this being called a "betrayer moon". Betrayer and blue are easily confused in Middle English.

There's the farmer's version where it could cause them to do various seasonal activities a month early. The next of these is Aug 20-21 2013.

The next occurrence of two full moons in a calendar month is July 2015.

[OzEclipse]

Hi Andrew,

It wasn't tongue in cheek but it could have been better expressed. The definition of blue Moon being two full Moons in one calendar month is the recent development. An article by Jame's Pruett titled "Once in a Blue Moon" was published in Sky and Telescope in March 1946.

The earliest use of a Blue Moon as the second full moon in a month stemmed from the March 1946 issue of Sky and Telescope magazine, which contained an article called “Once in a Blue Moon” by James Hugh Pruett. He wrote:


Seven times in 19 years there were — and still are — 13 full moons in a year. This gives 11 months with one full moon each and one with two. This second in a month, so I interpret it, was called Blue Moon.

The seasonal definitions do as you say go back much further. I should hae worded my reply more carefully.

Frankly, I don't get what all the fuss is about? There's nothing to look at that's any different to any other full Moon. The calendar is an artificial construct of man. The Gregorian calendar we use now is only about 400 years old. The second full Moon is called blue by virtue that it occurs within this artificially constructed calendar system of ours.

Occurring roughly once every three years and visible from most of the Earth, it isn't actually that rare compared to so many other phenomena.

On the other hand, the apparition of an aerosol refracted blue coloured Moon are very rare - now that's something I'd love to see one day.

Cheers

Joe