{"id":62749,"date":"2024-08-19T08:06:39","date_gmt":"2024-08-19T08:06:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/682cea54-7410-4771-9050-143a029857bf"},"modified":"2024-08-29T06:39:45","modified_gmt":"2024-08-29T06:39:45","slug":"super-blue-moon-19-august-2024","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/rss_feed\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Super Blue Moon 19 August 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>

By Iain Todd\n <\/p>

Published: Monday, 19 August 2024 at 08:06 AM<\/p>

\n\n

Tonight, stargazers will be treated to a rare spectacle, as a bright Super Blue Moon will be visible in the night sky.<\/p>

19 August 2024 marks the appearance of a relatively rare seasonal blue Moon, which will also be a so-called ‘supermoon’.<\/p>

But what do these terms mean, and will the Moon really look any different than usual?<\/p>

Read our guide on how to observe the Moon<\/a> and get lunar dates, times and phases delivered directly to your email inbox every week by signing up to the BBC Sky at Night Magazine newsletter<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>

Super Blue Moon over the Juromenha Fortress in Alentejo, Portugal, 30 August 2023. Credit: S\u00e9rgio Concei\u00e7\u00e3o<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Tonight’s Super Blue Moon quick facts<\/strong><\/h2>
From the UK, tonight’s full Moon will appear over the eastern horizon at 20:46 BST (19:46 UT).<\/p>
This moon is technically a ‘perigee syzygy Moon’: ‘perigee’ meaning the Moon will be at the closest point to Earth in its orbit, ‘syzygy’ meaning a straight-line alignment of three celestial bodies (in this case the Sun, Earth and Moon).<\/p>
‘Supermoon<\/a>‘ is the informal name for a perigee syzygy Moon, and has its roots in astrology.<\/p>
A true blue Moon<\/a>, keeping with the correct astronomical definition, is the third full Moon in an astronomical season of four.<\/p>
The 19 August 2024 full Moon will be both a supermoon and a true blue Moon, which is what makes this a ‘true blue supermoon’, and something of a rarity.<\/p>
This full Moon is the first of four consecutive supermoons, the next appearing on 18 September, 17 October and 15 November.<\/p>
$\"A$
A view of the Super Blue Moon captured in the morning of 31 August 2023 by Taranjot Singh, Sydney, Australia. Equipment: Nikon D850 camera, Nikkor 200-500mm lens, tripod.Exposure: f\/5.6, ISO 200, shutter 1\/5<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Why blue Moons happen<\/strong><\/h2>
We normally see 12 full Moons a year, with each calendar month having one full Moon.<\/p>
But our monthly calendar, based on Earth’s orbit around the Sun, doesn’t neatly match with the lunar cycle, and so some years we have 13 full Moons.<\/p>
This means that sometimes we get two full Moons in a calendar month, and this is the informal definition of a blue Moon.<\/p>
The older, more traditional meaning of a blue Moon is related to the astronomical season.<\/p>
$\"Equinoxes$
Equinoxes occur when the Sun crosses the celestial equator. For Earth, this is the point that the planet\u2019s axis points neither towards nor away from the Sun. Credit: BBC Sky at Night Magazine<\/figcaption><\/figure>
An astronomical season is the period of time between a solstice and an equinox.<\/p>
In the northern hemisphere, **summer solstice<\/strong> (around 20\u201322 June) marks the start of astronomical summer.<\/p>**
**Three months later,** **autumn equinox<\/a><\/strong> (around 21\u201323 September) marks the start of astronomical autumn.<\/p>**
**Within that time, usually we would see three full Moons.<\/p>**
The *Maine Farmers\u2019 Almanac<\/i> definition of a blue Moon is that it’s the third full Moon in a quarterly season of four full Moons.<\/p>*
***This is a seasonal blue Moon, and is the definition preferred by many astronomers.<\/p>***
*$\"A$* A view of the Super Blue Moon over the Nile River, Cairo, Egypt, 31 August 2023. Captured by Osama Fathi.Equipment: Nikon Z6 (Mod), RedCat51, Barlow 3X.Exposure: Single Shot, 1\/30 sec, ISO 2000, f\/4.5<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Seeing tonight’s Super Blue Moon<\/strong><\/h2>
The first thing to point out about tonight’s Super Blue Moon is that it won’t appear blue!<\/p>
And even though you’re observing a ‘supermoon’, when the Moon is closer to Earth than it normally appears, in truth you won’t notice much difference.<\/p>
Anyone expecting to see an enormous, bright blue Moon will be very disappointed!<\/p>
However, a full Moon is always big and bright and spectacular, making it certainly worth stepping out to observe.<\/p>
And the popularity of supermoons and blue Moons means lots of people will be observing that same Moon, making it something of a communal experience.<\/p>
$\"The$
The ‘terminator’ is the name given to the line dividing the lit and unlit portions of the Moon. Credit: Callum Pennington<\/figcaption><\/figure>
In truth, the best time to observe the Moon with a telescope or binoculars is when it’s *not<\/em> full.<\/p>*
*During its crescent and gibbous phases, the Moon is much less bright, which makes it easier to see interesting features like craters and* *lunar seas<\/a>.<\/p>*
And during those phases, the line dividing the lit and unlit portions of the Moon \u2013 known as the ‘terminator<\/a>‘ \u2013 throws shadows on craters, mountains and valleys on the Moon, highlighting the lunar topography.<\/p>
*However, there’s still plenty you can observe during a full Moon, and the naked-eye spectacle of a bright supermoon is something in itself.<\/p>*
*For more advice read our guide on how to make the most of a full Moon or supermoon<\/a>.<\/p>*
*And if you want to capture the event, read our guides on how to photograph the Moon<\/a> and how to photograph the Moon with a smartphone<\/a>.<\/p>*
***Share your experiences and images with us by emailing contactus@skyatnightmagazine.com.<\/em><\/strong><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n***
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By Iain Todd Published: Monday, 19 August 2024 at 08:06 AM Tonight, stargazers will be treated to a rare spectacle, as a bright Super Blue Moon will be visible in the night sky. 19 August 2024 marks the appearance of a relatively rare seasonal blue Moon, which will also be a so-called ‘supermoon’. But what […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":62750,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"4"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024.jpg",1200,800,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024.jpg",1200,800,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024.jpg",1200,800,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Iain Todd Published: Monday, 19 August 2024 at 08:06 AM Tonight, stargazers will be treated to a rare spectacle, as a bright Super Blue Moon will be visible in the night sky. 19 August 2024 marks the appearance of a relatively rare seasonal blue Moon, which will also be a so-called ‘supermoon’. But what…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/62749"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62750"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62749"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62749"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

Super Blue Moon over the Juromenha Fortress in Alentejo, Portugal, 30 August 2023. Credit: S\u00e9rgio Concei\u00e7\u00e3o<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Tonight’s Super Blue Moon quick facts<\/strong><\/h2>
From the UK, tonight’s full Moon will appear over the eastern horizon at 20:46 BST (19:46 UT).<\/p>
This moon is technically a ‘perigee syzygy Moon’: ‘perigee’ meaning the Moon will be at the closest point to Earth in its orbit, ‘syzygy’ meaning a straight-line alignment of three celestial bodies (in this case the Sun, Earth and Moon).<\/p>
‘Supermoon<\/a>‘ is the informal name for a perigee syzygy Moon, and has its roots in astrology.<\/p>
A true blue Moon<\/a>, keeping with the correct astronomical definition, is the third full Moon in an astronomical season of four.<\/p>
The 19 August 2024 full Moon will be both a supermoon and a true blue Moon, which is what makes this a ‘true blue supermoon’, and something of a rarity.<\/p>
This full Moon is the first of four consecutive supermoons, the next appearing on 18 September, 17 October and 15 November.<\/p>
$\"A$
A view of the Super Blue Moon captured in the morning of 31 August 2023 by Taranjot Singh, Sydney, Australia. Equipment: Nikon D850 camera, Nikkor 200-500mm lens, tripod.Exposure: f\/5.6, ISO 200, shutter 1\/5<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Why blue Moons happen<\/strong><\/h2>
We normally see 12 full Moons a year, with each calendar month having one full Moon.<\/p>
But our monthly calendar, based on Earth’s orbit around the Sun, doesn’t neatly match with the lunar cycle, and so some years we have 13 full Moons.<\/p>
This means that sometimes we get two full Moons in a calendar month, and this is the informal definition of a blue Moon.<\/p>
The older, more traditional meaning of a blue Moon is related to the astronomical season.<\/p>
$\"Equinoxes$
Equinoxes occur when the Sun crosses the celestial equator. For Earth, this is the point that the planet\u2019s axis points neither towards nor away from the Sun. Credit: BBC Sky at Night Magazine<\/figcaption><\/figure>
An astronomical season is the period of time between a solstice and an equinox.<\/p>
In the northern hemisphere, **summer solstice<\/strong> (around 20\u201322 June) marks the start of astronomical summer.<\/p>**
**Three months later,** **autumn equinox<\/a><\/strong> (around 21\u201323 September) marks the start of astronomical autumn.<\/p>**
**Within that time, usually we would see three full Moons.<\/p>**
The *Maine Farmers\u2019 Almanac<\/i> definition of a blue Moon is that it’s the third full Moon in a quarterly season of four full Moons.<\/p>*
***This is a seasonal blue Moon, and is the definition preferred by many astronomers.<\/p>***
*$\"A$* A view of the Super Blue Moon over the Nile River, Cairo, Egypt, 31 August 2023. Captured by Osama Fathi.Equipment: Nikon Z6 (Mod), RedCat51, Barlow 3X.Exposure: Single Shot, 1\/30 sec, ISO 2000, f\/4.5<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Seeing tonight’s Super Blue Moon<\/strong><\/h2>
The first thing to point out about tonight’s Super Blue Moon is that it won’t appear blue!<\/p>
And even though you’re observing a ‘supermoon’, when the Moon is closer to Earth than it normally appears, in truth you won’t notice much difference.<\/p>
Anyone expecting to see an enormous, bright blue Moon will be very disappointed!<\/p>
However, a full Moon is always big and bright and spectacular, making it certainly worth stepping out to observe.<\/p>
And the popularity of supermoons and blue Moons means lots of people will be observing that same Moon, making it something of a communal experience.<\/p>
$\"The$
The ‘terminator’ is the name given to the line dividing the lit and unlit portions of the Moon. Credit: Callum Pennington<\/figcaption><\/figure>
In truth, the best time to observe the Moon with a telescope or binoculars is when it’s *not<\/em> full.<\/p>*
*During its crescent and gibbous phases, the Moon is much less bright, which makes it easier to see interesting features like craters and* *lunar seas<\/a>.<\/p>*
And during those phases, the line dividing the lit and unlit portions of the Moon \u2013 known as the ‘terminator<\/a>‘ \u2013 throws shadows on craters, mountains and valleys on the Moon, highlighting the lunar topography.<\/p>
*However, there’s still plenty you can observe during a full Moon, and the naked-eye spectacle of a bright supermoon is something in itself.<\/p>*
*For more advice read our guide on how to make the most of a full Moon or supermoon<\/a>.<\/p>*
*And if you want to capture the event, read our guides on how to photograph the Moon<\/a> and how to photograph the Moon with a smartphone<\/a>.<\/p>*
***Share your experiences and images with us by emailing contactus@skyatnightmagazine.com.<\/em><\/strong><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n***
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By Iain Todd Published: Monday, 19 August 2024 at 08:06 AM Tonight, stargazers will be treated to a rare spectacle, as a bright Super Blue Moon will be visible in the night sky. 19 August 2024 marks the appearance of a relatively rare seasonal blue Moon, which will also be a so-called ‘supermoon’. But what […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":62750,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"4"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024.jpg",1200,800,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024.jpg",1200,800,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2024\/08\/super-blue-moon-19-august-2024.jpg",1200,800,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Iain Todd Published: Monday, 19 August 2024 at 08:06 AM Tonight, stargazers will be treated to a rare spectacle, as a bright Super Blue Moon will be visible in the night sky. 19 August 2024 marks the appearance of a relatively rare seasonal blue Moon, which will also be a so-called ‘supermoon’. But what…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/62749"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62750"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62749"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62749"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}