Rare blue moon set to rise this Halloween
Just when you thought 2020 is strange enough, nature is up for a little more spook this Halloween. At 10:39 p.m. of October 31, the night sky will be lighted up by a rare blue moon.
Don't be fooled by its name, though. The moon won't exactly turn sapphire in color. "Blue moon" is simply a term used to define the second full moon in a month.
Since the first full moon of October—also known as the harvest moon—appeared on the first day of the month, the full moon on October 31 is then coined a "blue moon."
It is considered rare because a blue moon only takes place every two and a half to three years on average, according to NASA's National Space Science Data Center.
While a blue moon only shows up "once in a blue moon," a full moon happening on Halloween across all time zones is even more unusual. It occurs on Halloween every 19 years, with the last one dating back to 1944.
The 31st would be the best time to take a photo of the moon because after this year, the next Halloween full moons are set to appear in 2039, 2058, 2077, and 2096.
Banner image from Alexis Antonio on Unsplash.