The term "super blue moon" refers to a full moon occurring within 90 percent of its closest approach to Earth, a concept first introduced by astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979.
The full moon will be a blue supermoon, a celestial occurrence that combines two events: a supermoon, which is when the moon is closest to the Earth, and a blue moon, the third of four full moons in a single season.
How rare is a blue supermoon? Each event in a vacuum isn't that rare. Supermoons happen three to four times a year, while seasonal blue moons happen every 2.5 or so years. The two happening together, on the other hand, occurs less frequently.
In very rare circumstances, the Moon can appear blue, but in this case the colour would be caused by viewing the Moon through a haze of dust particles in our atmosphere, perhaps from a recent volcanic eruption. From space, however, the Moon will look just as grey as it always has!
Blue: The second full moon in a month is called a “blue moon.” At 29.5 days, the lunar phase cycle falls right under an average month, making two full moons a possibility every so often. Blood: This means that the moon will pass through Earth's shadow, giving viewers in the right location a total lunar eclipse.
"What Is About To Happen Is Extraordinary..." | Ashtar Command
What is the rarest moon?
Approximately one-quarter of all full moons are supermoons. Blue moons, however, are much rarer — a mere 3% of full moons. It doesn't mean the moon actually appears blue, though. It is just the term commonly used when two full moons appear within the same calendar month.
Because the moon has a relatively short orbital period, supermoons are common, occurring about four to six times a year. Blue moons are rarer, only occurring every 2.5 to three years. But having both a supermoon and a blue only happens once every 10 to 20 years.
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.
It holds the potential for transformation, introspection, and a deeper connection with our inner selves. As we admire the luminous blue moon as it lights up the night sky, we are reminded of the mysteries and strength that are both above and within us.
Although they're rare, rainbows produced by moonlight — known as lunar rainbows or moonbows — do occur from time to time. Just like the rays of the Sun can create a rainbow during the day, reflected light from the Moon can create a moonbow if the conditions are just right.
The Hunter's Moon this week will be the third of four consecutive supermoons, NASA said. It falls on Thursday, Oct. 17, and comes on the heels of the moon reaching perigee one day earlier. Because of that, the supermoon is expected to be the biggest and brightest of its kind in 2024, albeit, by a very small margin.
Blue moons are also a time of introspection. "They really can accelerate our emotional responses to things because the moon is our emotion," Stardust adds. "If you're going to express yourself, the full moon would be a good time to say how you feel because people will want to understand and hear it at that moment."
What does the supermoon mean spiritually? The supermoon's amplified energy can deepen your spiritual practices. The moon (especially the full moon) has always played a significant role in spiritual practices because of its strong connection to our emotions, dreams, and intuition.
On rare occasions, tiny particles in the air can scatter away red wavelengths of light, causing the Moon to appear blue, according to NASA, but the name "blue moon" does not refer to the moon's color. Monday's blue moon was the only one that will be seen in 2024.
The August 2024 full moon will be particularly special because it will be a blue moon — but not because it's the second full moon in a calendar month. Instead, the August full moon will be a seasonal blue moon, which occurs when there are four full moons in a single astronomical season, instead of the usual three.
According to NASA, a blue moon only occurs once every two or three years on average--and a blue moon that is also a supermoon is even rarer. While a ``super blue moon'' can occasionally happen twice within two months, at other times, it could be 20 years before the phenomenon repeats.
In one usage of the phrase, a blue moon refers to the second full moon in a calendar month. These uncommon moons occur because the length of our months doesn't exactly align with the roughly 29.5-day lunar cycle. The most recent “monthly blue moon” was last year in August. The next one will happen in late May 2026.
Also called a "super blue moon," the rare combination occurs when the different cycles of blue and supermoons happen to align on the calendar, NASA's Noah Petro, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter project scientist told USA Today. Here's what to know about it.
For much of Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia, the last purple moon occurred in 1999, but for those regions up through Middle East, the next purple moon would not be until 2075. For far eastern world like Japan and central and eastern Australia, the last purple moon occurred in 1980 and will next occur in 2094.
Because Earth's seasons are approximately three months long, they typically have three new moons. When a season has four new moons the third new moon is called a Black Moon. These seasonal Black Moons occur about once every 33 months according to Time and Date.
Lunar rainbows – moonbows – occur less than 10 percent as often as normal rainbows. Moonbows need a few additional conditions to form, which is why they're so rare. Although well known, rainbows themselves are not common – most places see fewer than six in a year.
