18 FAQs about the Blue Moon (The Astronomy Cafe)

Sky and Telescope article,

NASA Article

I know that these articles will dismiss the naming of the 'second full moon of the month' as a big misunderstanding, but as an astronomer, I will continue to define a 'Blue Moon' that way because otherwise this second full moon of a month will go unnamed, unlike the second new moon which is called the Black Moon, the Finders Moon etc.!! (Dr. Sten Odenwald, May 2000)

History and Definitions:

  1. Who invented the term 'Blue Moon'?
  2. What is the atmospheric process that causes a 'Blue Moon'?
  3. Exactly when did the term 'Blue Moon' first get used?
  4. What facts or lore have to do with the Blue Moon?
  5. Does a Blue Moon happen at the same time everywhere on the Earth?
  6. Is your statement that there cannot be two Blue Moons in any given year, really accurate?
  7. What is a Blue Moon and when have the most recent ones occurred?

Predictions:

  1. When will the next Blue Moon happen?
  2. How many Blue Moons will there be in 1999?
  3. Can there ever be two Blue Moons in a single year?
  4. Can you have two Blue Moons in a year?
  5. Officially, how many Blue Moons were there in 1996?
  6. When was the last time a Blue Moon happened in June on a Sunday?
  7. When was the last Blue Moon in February, and when will the next one be?
  8. When is the next Full Moon ( the Blue Moon!) after June 15, 1996?
  9. Is there a Blue Moon in June, 1996 or not?
  10. Is there, or isn't there going to be a Blue Moon in June, 1996?
  11. Will there be a Blue Moon in June or July of 1996?

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