his once in a lifetime occurrence?
First, is the supermoon. A supermoon transpires when a full moon is closest to Earth in orbit. This results in a brighter, larger-appearing moon. This happens because the moon’s orbit is not a perfect circle, but more of an oval. So sometimes, it is actually closer to the earth.
You may have heard the term “once in a blue moon” when referring to something that doesn’t happen often. But, an actual blue moon is not really a very rare occurrence.
A blue moon is either the second full moon in a calendar month or the third full moon in a season that has four full moons. This occurs about once every two and half years.
Interestingly, the blue moon is not actually blue in color. There are various theories as to why it is called a blue moon, dating all the way back to the 16th century.
The third and final moon that makes up the super blue blood moon is the blood moon. You may not realize the blood moon is actually a lunar eclipse.
This happens when the earth, sun, and moon are in perfect alignment. When this happens, each covers one another, a unique positioning which makes the earth’s shadow block the sun’s light, which then reflects off of the moon.
This creates a bright red color on the moon’s service that is visible from earth.
So on the night of January 31st or February 1st depending on where you live, there will be a super rare super blue blood moon. The moon will be larger, brighter, and bright red.
Depending on where you live, it will occur at different times, and you may or may not be in the path of totality. Space.com has more information on when and how you can view this extraordinary event.
Do you have plans to view this rare moon? Please share so that others can witness this astounding celestial event!