New Zealand Local Weather Forum
Climate and Science => Space, Science and Nature => Topic started by: JennyLeez on January 04, 2018, 09:55:17 PM
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Supermoon full moons will occur on Dec. 3, 2017,Jan. 1, 2018 and Jan. 31, 2018. The Jan. 31 supermoon will also be a blue moon and occur during a total lunar eclipse. ... Only the light reflected off Earth will be visible on its surface, producing a ruddy red-brown color on the moon's surface during totality.
More from space.com:
https://www.space.com/39241-first-blue-moon-total-eclipse-150-years.html (https://www.space.com/39241-first-blue-moon-total-eclipse-150-years.html)
and from nzherald.co.nz:
Mark the date, the blood moon or blue supermoon is coming in a rare lunar event which happens only every 150 years.
Three separate celestial events — a supermoon, a blue moon and a full lunar eclipse — will occur simultaneously on January 31.
Just weeks after 2018's first supermoon of January 1 and 2, this astronomical rarity of events is being called a super blue blood moon eclipse.
This particular blue moon will likely look red in some areas, because of the total lunar eclipse which can give the moon a red tinge, giving it the name blood moon.
This confluence of events has not happened since the second half of the 19th century. And January's blue moon will be followed by another blue moon in late March.
Following the two full moons occurring in January, the calendar month of February will have no full moon.
In March, however, there will be two full moons, with the blue moon on March 31.
The moon, which lies 385,000km away, guides life on Earth by creating its tidal rhythm and moderating the planet's axis and stabilising the climate.
NASA is encouraging people to use these rare lunar events as a chance to study the moon.
"The supermoons are a great opportunity for people to start looking at the moon, not just that once but every chance they have," said Noah Petro, a research scientist from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Centre.
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I am not sure where the NZ Herald gained the above info from but it is incorrect for New Zealand.
Only the States will see the Blue moon for both January and March.
The Full Moons for NZ are:
Jan 2nd at 3.24pm
Feb 1st at 2.26am
March 2nd at 1.51pm
April 1st at 1.36am
As you see even taking Daylight Saving into consideration New Zealand will not have 2 Blue moons come January and March as the New Zealand Herald suggests. Furthermore there will be a Full Moon in February.
I apologise for the incorrect posting above. I obviously should have checked these facts out first.
Cheers
Jenny