Monday's sky offers a blue moon and a supermoon in one fairly rare occurrence
Value-conscious sky watchers can rejoice Monday as the night could bring into focus a rare two-for-one: a supermoon and a seasonal blue moon converged for a single viewing.
Value-conscious sky watchers can rejoice Monday as the night could bring into focus a rare two-for-one: a supermoon and a seasonal blue moon converged for a single viewing.
NASA says that combination happens roughly every 10 years under the stricter definition of a blue moon — the third in a season with four full moons.
A supermoon happens when a full moon takes place as the moon is its closest to Earth along its orbit. The proximity varies even for supermoon occurrences, with the strongest ones appearing about 14% larger than when a full moon is farthest from Earth. This won't be one of the stronger supermoons, but it will still be super, NASA said.
The moon's color will remain off-white and gray, with hints of brown and yellow.
Sometimes the stretch between two appearances of what NASA calls a "super blue moon" can be as long as 20 years, NASA said in a FAQ for Monday's bright night.
Rating: 5