‘Once in a Blue Moon’ Coming Soon

by Lauren Lambert

There’s an extra special treat coming Earth’s way – a Blue Moon on the night of Oct. 31 for Halloween.

What is a Blue Moon?

According to modern folklore, it is a phenomenon where a Full Moon appears twice in one calendar month. Typically, each month has only one, as Full Moons occur about 29 days apart.

Our first Full Moon of the month – known as a Harvest Moon – occurred on Oct. 1. This is a name given to the Full Moon happening closest to the autumnal equinox – the first day of fall. The Blue Moon coming up is respectively known as the Hunter’s Moon.  Rising in the early evening, the Hunter’s Moon was given its name because it provided plenty of moonlight for hunters to gather meat for the long winter ahead.

One way to make a Blue Moon is by using a blue filter. That's what a photographer did back in 2004 when he photographed this Full Moon rising over Brighton, Massachusetts. Credit: Kostian Iftica
One way to make a Blue Moon is by using a blue filter. That’s what a photographer did back in 2004 when he photographed this Full Moon rising over Brighton, Massachusetts. Credit: Kostian Iftica

While the informal phrase “once in a Blue Moon” refers to something that rarely happens, the same definition rings true for the skies this Halloween. These moons are of significance because they only come every two or three years. In fact, the last Blue Moon occurred on March 31, 2018.

Contrary to its name, a Blue Moon has nothing to do with the Moon having a blue hue. However, very rarely there are actual blue-tinted Moons due to particles thrown into the atmosphere by natural catastrophes. In 1883, an Indonesian volcano called Krakatoa had an eruption so large that it was compared by scientists to a 100-megaton nuclear bomb. Lots of ash from the Krakatoa explosion rose into the atmosphere. Many of these ash particles were about 1 micron in size, which could scatter red light and act as a blue filter. This resulted in the Moon appearing blue.

Blue-colored Moons appeared for years following the 1883 eruption. Many other volcanos and even wildfires throughout history have been known to affect the color of the moon. As a rule of thumb, in order to create a bluish Moon, dust or ash particles must be larger than ~0.6 microns, which is the wavelength of red light. Having said that, what we call a Blue Moon appears pale grey and white – just like the Moon on any other night. Having a second Full Moon in one given month does not change its color.

October’s Blue Moon, however, will be the first Blue Moon to appear on Halloween since 1944. This moon occurred one month following the introduction of the Aggregat 4, or the V-2 rocket. This rocket was the first vehicle capable of reaching the edge of space. In years following, the Apollo Saturn V became its direct descendant.

As we approach October 2020’s Blue Moon, the Artemis Generation prepares to explore the Moon’s surface from a lunar base. NASA’s Artemis program is named after the twin sister to Apollo, the Sun god in Greek mythology, and she is known as the goddess of the Moon. There hasn’t been this much momentum to return to the Moon’s surface since the Apollo missions.

The next Halloween Blue Moon will occur in 2039. By then, the Artemis Generation will hopefully look at Mars from that same lunar base – perhaps passing the torch to an Ares Generation bound for the Red Planet.

It’s All About Mars in October

by Lance D. Davis

NASA is developing a path for an exciting journey to Mars – a rich destination for scientific discovery and human exploration as we expand our presence into the solar system. This month of October brings an amazing night-sky view of the Red Planet.

Mars is currently visible, reaching its highest point in the sky around midnight. Earth’s closest neighbor is also at its brightest and will remain that way well into November.

Two illustrations contrasting Mars’ position when it reaches opposition and conjunction. During opposition, like in October 2020, Earth passes near Mars – which is easily visible and bright. During conjunction, Mars and Earth are far from each other, so Mars appears small and faint.
Two illustrations contrasting Mars’ position when it reaches opposition and conjunction. During opposition, like in October 2020, Earth passes near Mars – which is easily visible and bright. During conjunction, Mars and Earth are far from each other, so Mars appears small and faint. Credit: NASA

Right now, Mars is the third brightest object in Earth’s night. The Moon and Venus are the two brightest objects, and usually Jupiter is third. But for this season, Mars is passing close enough to Earth to outshine Jupiter. This great visibility of Mars coincides with an event known as opposition, which happens every two years and two months.

Opposition occurs when the orbit of a planet, such as Mars, takes it near the Earth. Just like runners passing each other on a track, the faster, inner planets, such as Earth, can approach and overtake slower-moving outer planets like Mars. When the planets pass each other during this opposition, Mars’ proximity means it will appear larger and brighter in our sky. Because the Sun, Earth, and Mars are lined up during this passing, Mars will rise at sunset, having a high overhead at midnight. This is the closest the Red Planet will come to Earth for the next 15 years, or until September 2035.

At its furthest, Mars reaches about 250 million miles (400 million km) from Earth. During the October opposition, it will be as close as 40 million miles (60 million km) – nearly seven times closer. Although Mars will still look like a bright star to the unaided eye, it will grow dramatically in size when seen in a telescope. This year, Mars’ closest approach to Earth happens just a week before the opposition on Oct. 13, giving the Red Planet its biggest, apparent size of the 2020’s.

When it comes to observing Mars around opposition, telescopes will show more of the planet’s details, such as dark and light regions on Mars’ surface, and the prominent south polar ice cap, which will be tilted towards the Earth. Due to the turbulence of our atmosphere, these details can be hard to see, especially in smaller telescopes.

Many amateur astronomers use a color video camera attached to their telescope, running special software that selects the best frames to stack into a single image. This helps in negating the blurring caused by the air.

The most striking thing about Mars’ appearance – whether seen with the naked eye or through a telescope – is its red color. This color is caused by iron in the rocks on Mars’ surface – the same thing that causes the red color in sandstone formations in the southwestern US.

So, when you spot Mars, keep your eye on it and enjoy its fiery, red brightness!

 

Sky Watching Highlights for October 2020

There’s plenty to see in the sky for October! The Moon will be full not once, but twice this month. It’s also a great time for viewing Mars and trying to spot the galaxy of Andromeda. Learn more from the video below produced by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.