The second New Moon in a single is called a 'Black Moon'
Super Blue Moon eclipse on January 31
Total lunar eclipse photo, above, taken in 2004 by Fred Espenak
The Blue Moon – second of two full moons in one calendar month – will pass through the Earth’s shadow on January 31, 2018, to give us a total lunar eclipse. Totality, when the moon will be entirely inside the Earth’s dark umbral shadow, will last a bit more than one-and-a-quarter hours. The January 31 full moon is also the third in a series of three straight full moon supermoons – that is, super-close full moons. It’s the first of two Blue Moons in 2018. So it’s not just a total lunar eclipse, or a Blue Moon, or a supermoon. It’s all three … a super Blue Moon total eclipse!
Is it the first Blue Moon total eclipse in 150 years, as some social media memes are now claiming? It is … if you’re not considering the whole world, but only the Americas. More about that below.
How about supermoon total lunar eclipses? The last supermoon total lunar eclipse was in September 2015. And the last super Blue Moon total eclipse happened on December 30, 1982.
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On 31 Jan, something super weird will happen to the moon. And we will all be able to witness it here in Singapore.
Known as a “super blue total lunar eclipse”, the unique phenomenon will feature the moon at 3 different states – a supermoon, lunar eclipse, and blue moon – all at the same time.
Last seen in 1866, this rare combination of phenomena will be making its appearance after 152 years, and it’s likely that this will be your only opportunity to ever view a moon as rare as this.
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Here's where to see the rare 'super blue blood moon' in Singapore
Wait, what is a ‘super blue blood moon’? - It’s a unique phenomenon that sees three overlapping lunar events: a blue moon (when there are two full moons in one month), a super moon (when the moon appears larger than normal because it’s closest to the Earth) and a blood moon (when the moon appears red because Earth’s shadow is cast on it, also known as a total lunar eclipse).
Sounds cool. Err, but why is this special? - Because the last time the planets aligned this way was in 1866, almost 152 years ago!
Will my eyes hurt if I look at the moon directly then? - Unlike a solar eclipse, you can view this lunar eclipse safely without any protective eyewear.
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31 Jan, the Moon Will Be Super Big & Super Red
Supermoon - As the moniker suggests, the Moon will appear 14% bigger and 30% brighter. But you won’t be able to tell the difference under the naked eye. The supermoon occurs when the Moon is closest to Earth (aka perigee) in its elliptic orbit.
Blue moon - It has nothing to do with the Moon turning blue. It means that it is the second full moon in a calendar month. This is a rather common phenomenon, occurring every two years or so.
Lunar eclipse - Not to be confused with the solar eclipse, this is when the Moon turns red as the sunlight is blocked by the earth’s shadow and the light seen is refracted through the Earth’s shadow. Coz’ of Rayleigh scattering, the light turns red—that is why sometimes we get paddle pop skies in the evening—and that’s why it looks like a murder happened on the Moon.
Why is it special - These three lunar events will be happening at the same time today—the lunar holy trinity. According to Sky and Telescope magazine, the last time a “blue moon” total lunar eclipse occurred was in 1866!
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31 January 2018 — Total Lunar Eclipse
The total phase of this lunar eclipse, also known as a Blood Moon, will be visible in large parts of US, northeastern Europe, Russia, Asia, the Indian Ocean, the Pacific, and Australia.
Is this Total Lunar Eclipse visible in Singapore?
The animation shows approximately what the eclipse looks like from the night side of the Earth.
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2018 Full Moon Calendar
The moon shows its full face to Earth once a month. Well, sort of.
In fact, the same side of the moon always faces the planet, but part of it is in shadow. And, in reality most of the time the "full moon" is never perfectly full. Only when the moon, Earth and the sun are perfectly aligned is the moon 100 percent full, and that alignment produces a lunar eclipse. And sometimes — once in a blue moon — the moon is full twice in a month (or four times in a season, depending on which definition you prefer). [The Moon: 10 Surprising Facts]
The next full moon will be a Blue Moon — the second full moon of January — on Wednesday, Jan. 31. To casual observers, the moon will still appear full the day prior and after the peak. Like January's first full moon, the second full moon will be a "supermoon" as the moon arrives at perigee close to reaching its fullest phase. There will also be a total lunar eclipse during the Blue Moon, which some are billing as a rare Super Blue-Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse. Such a Blue Moon total lunar eclipse has not occurred for 152 years, our skywatching columnist Joe Rao has found.
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Full moon
The full moon is the lunar phase when the Moon appears fully illuminated from Earth's perspective. This occurs when Earth is located directly between the Sun and the Moon (more exactly, when the ecliptic longitudes of the Sun and Moon differ by 180°). This means that the lunar hemisphere facing Earth – the near side – is completely sunlit and appears as a circular disk, while the far side is dark. The full moon occurs once roughly every month.
When the Moon moves into Earth's shadow, a lunar eclipse occurs, during which all or part of the Moon's face may appear reddish due to the Rayleigh scattering of blue wavelengths and the refraction of sunlight through Earth's atmosphere. Lunar eclipses happen only during full moon and around points on its orbit where the satellite may pass through the planet's shadow. A lunar eclipses does not occur every month because the Moon's orbit is inclined 5.14° to the ecliptic plane; thus, the Moon usually passes north or south of Earth's shadow, which is mostly restricted to this plane of reference. Lunar eclipses happen only when the full moon occurs around either node of its orbit (ascending or descending). Therefore, a lunar eclipse occurs approximately every 6 months and often 2 weeks before or after a solar eclipse, which occurs during new moon around the opposite node.
The interval period between a new or full moon and the next same phase, a synodic month, averages about 29.53 days. Therefore, in those lunar calendars in which each month begins on the day of the new moon, the full moon falls on either the 14th or 15th day of the lunar month. Because a calendar month consists of a whole number of days, a lunar month may be either 29 or 30 days long.
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Moon Phase Terms
Full Moon & New Moon Calendar for 2018
Full Moon - The moon is full when the moon is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun. Another way to look at it is that the moon, sun and earth are in a line with the earth being between the sun and moon. When this occurs the entire surface of the moon looks to be illuminated. The full moon occurs every 29.53058 days.
New Moon - A new moon occurs when the moon is between the earth and the sun. We are seeing the oposite side of the moon that the sun is shinning on. At the exact time of the New moon the moon is to close to the sun to see at all.
Blue Moon - Today we consider the Blue Moon to be when a full moon occurs twice in one month. This is a relatively new concept for the term. Originaly a blue moon was considered to be when a full moon occured 4 times in a season. A season usualy has 3 full moons. The term has became popular when referring to any rare event.
Super Moon - A new or full moon which occurs with the Moon at or near (within 90% of) its closest approach to Earth in a given orbit (perigee). In short, Earth, Moon and Sun are all in a line, with Moon in its nearest approach to Earth.
Black Moon - This is a term that is not used frequently and has no exact definition. Some sources use this term when there are 2 new moons in one month similar to the blue moon which is 2 full moons in a month. It is also the term used when there is no full moon in a month. Having a month with no full moon is very rare. It can only happen in the month of February since is has fewer days then the full moon cycle of 29.53058 days.
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WHAT IS A BLUE MOON?
The modern day definition of a Blue Moon is when there are 2 Full Moons in one Month. A Full Moon occurs roughly every 29.5 days and on the rare occasions when the Full Moon falls at the very beginning of a month there is a good chance a Blue Moon will occur at the end of the month. According to this definition the next Blue Moon will occur on January 31, 2018.
Depending on the exact time of the Blue Moon it is possible that some places in the world don't technicly have a Blue Moon. As an example the Blue Moon on August 31, 2012 occured exactly at 13:58 UT. The Blue Moon will occur on August 31 for South America, North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, India, and Austrialia but New Zealand will just miss out. For New Zealand the Full Moon occurs just past mid-night on September 1st. For exact times of the Full and Blue Moons see the Full Moon Calendar.
ORIGINAL BLUE MOON DEFINITION
The modern definition of a Blue Moon was derived from an earlier idea of what a Blue Moon was. This earlier definition says a Blue Moon is when there are 4 Full Moons in a season rather than the usual 3. The Blue moon is the 3rd Full Moon out of the 4. This definition gets a bit complicated and it's origins are murky. One school of thought has to do with the naming of the Full Moons. Many cultures named the Full Moons each month to reflected the times for planting, harvesting or seasonal conditions. When an extra Full Moon was thrown in it was referred to as a Blue Moon to keep the Full Moon names constant throughout the year.
Another origin could be from the Christian ecclesiastical calendar. This one gets even more tricky but basically has to do with the idea that there are usually 12 Full Moons in a year. The Full Moons on this calendar were important markers for determining curtain dates such as Easter. When a 13th Full moon was thrown into the year it made things messy so giving it a name allowed the calendar to stay on track.
The idea of a Blue Moon being the extra full moon in a season (or when there were 13 in a year) was widely used in 19th and early 20th center Farmers Almanacs and the more modern version seems to have come from an article written in the 1930's that misinterpreted the Farmers Almanac definition. The article was names "Once in a Blue Moon" and from that point on the term became part of popular culture.
IS THE MOON EVER THE COLOR BLUE?
This is a very rare event but it does happen. There are a few recorded events when forest fires or ash volcanic eruptions have given the moon a bluish color. The moon can also has a blueish color on very cold winter nights when ice crystals in the air form a ring around the moon. Of course the idea of the moon being blue is very subjective and left up to ones own interpretation.
DARK MOON
An interesting twist to the idea of a Blue Moon is the idea of Dark Moon. Sometimes the reference of a Dark Moon is given when there are 2 new moons is a calendar month, the opposite of a Blue Moon. Other definitions say it is when there is no Full moon is a calendar month. Neither of these definitions or the term Dark Moon is used very often. Neither has any scientific bases and is more a part of popular culture.
SUPER MOON
The phenomenon whereby the moon appears particularly large in the sky owing to the coincidence of its closest approach to the earth (the perigee) with a full (or new) moon.
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Chinese Lunar Calendar
Full Moon on 1st Jan 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Nov 2017 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 31st Jan 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Dec 2017 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 2nd Mar 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Jan 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 31st Mar 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Feb 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 30th Apr 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Mar 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 29 May 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Apr 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 28th Jun 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th May 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 27 Jul 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Jun 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 25th Aug 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Jul 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 24th Sep 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Aug 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 23rd Oct 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Sep 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 22nd Nov 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Oct 2018 in Chinese calendar
Full Moon on 21st Dec 2018 in Gregorian calendar & on 15th Nov 2018 in Chinese calendar
Chinese calendar, a lunisolar calendar, is formed on the movement of the moon.
Full Moon occurs on every 15th Day of the Chinese Lunar Calendar.
There are 2 Full Moons in January & March but no Full Moon in February 2018.
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Full Coverage:
January 2018 lunar eclipse - Wikipedia
Total Lunar Eclipse on January 31, 2018 – Where and When to See
Total Lunar Eclipse 2018: Don't Miss The Rare Phenomenon On Jan 31
When Is The Next Total Lunar Eclipse After January 2018?
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