The Supermoon, Blood Moon, Blue Moon, and Harvest Moon are all natural phenomena.
What are the various types of full moons?
A full moon occurs
when the side of the Moon that faces Earth is completely illuminated by the
Sun. There are several types of unusual full moons, including blood moons,
supermoons, blue moons, and harvest moons, among others.
When you look up at
the night sky, you may notice that the Moon appears to change every night. This
is because our Moon has many different phases and types.
A full moon occurs
when the side of the Moon that faces Earth is completely illuminated by the
Sun. But did you know that not all full moons have the same appearance?
The Moon may appear to glow red at times. The
Moon may appear larger than usual in our night sky at times. The Moon does not
change color or size. Its appearance changes are usually caused by its
position in relation to the Sun and Earth. Here are some examples of those
unusual full moons:
The Blood Moon
The red glow of a "blood moon" gives
it one meaning. A total lunar eclipse occurs during this blood moon. During a
total lunar eclipse, the Earth aligns with the Moon and the Sun. This shields
the Moon from direct sunlight.
When this happens, the only light reaching the
Moon's surface comes from the Earth's atmosphere's edges. The majority of the
blue light is scattered by the air molecules in the Earth's atmosphere. The
remaining light reflects with a red glow onto the Moon's surface, causing the
Moon to appear red in the night sky.
The term "blood
moon" is also used to describe a Moon that appears reddish due to dust,
smoke, or haze in the sky. It could also be one of the autumn full moons when the
leaves turn red.
Supermoon
A
"supermoon" appears to us as a larger-than-usual Moon in our night
sky. Because it is closer to Earth, a supermoon appears larger. The term
"supermoon" refers to what astronomers call a perigean full moon or
a moon that is full and at the closest point in its orbit around Earth.
Blue Moon
When you hear someone say, "Once in a blue
moon..." you know they're talking about something special. A blue moon is
not blue in color. In fact, a blue moon looks exactly like a monthly full
moon.
A blue moon is special because it is the
"extra" Moon in a season with four full moons. This happens once
every two and a half years on average. Since the 1940s, the term "blue
moon" has also been used to refer to the second full moon in a calendar
month. This happens only every two and a half years on average.
The Harvest Moon
The term "harvest moon" refers to the
full, bright Moon that appears near the beginning of autumn. The name comes
from a time before electricity when farmers relied on the light of the Moon to
harvest their crops late at night. The Moon's light was especially important in
the fall when harvests were at their peak.
The Moon and NASA Missions
NASA launched the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
(LRO) in 2009 to study Earth's Moon. NASA launched LRO into space to capture
high-resolution images of our Moon. These images will aid NASA scientists in
mapping the Moon's surface. What is the significance of a map of the Moon's
surface?
• Surface maps can help NASA identify potential
sources of water ice in the Moon's craters.
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