Once in a Blue Moon :May 2007

We have all heard the phrase " once in a blue moon"- it's mentioning merely suggesting the frequency of something's occurance. For instance "Once in a blue moon does my husband take out the trash without my having to remind him" or (to be fair) "Once in a blue moon my wife will cook something that doesn't taste too terrible". Whatever the scenario may be, a blue moon is something that happens every now and again. That is until next month rolls around. All of you fans of the saying may want to refrain from using the age old analogy for the duration of May- unless you are prepared to hear it retorted with " Oh , so the 31st of this month?"

May 2007, is among 17 of the next 20 years in which a blue moon will occur. The term, by modern definition simply refers to the second full moon to occur in any given calendar month. The last blue moon took place on July 31st of 2004. Years 2011, 2014, and 2017 will not esperience a blue moon. May will experience it's full moons of the 2nd, and again on the 31st, with the latter of the two being the blue moon.

The modern definition is far easier to comprehend by comparison to it's predecessor: which acknowledged a blue moon as any fourth full moon in a season. The last to occur by this definition took place in August of 2005. Blue moons by the traditional definition are far less frequent and typically happen a month prior to equinox ( the day when the sun is both above and below the equator in every part of the world for the same duration of time) or solctice ( the times of year when the Earth tilts the furthest away or towards the Sun). With this definition in place, blue moons would take place in the months of February, May, August, and November. This contradicts the modern definition in the respect that when the classification refers to having to full moons in one calendar month, February would never see a blue moon as it's shorter than the lunar cycle at 28 or 29 days respectively. The average span between full moons is 29.5 days.

Although even less frequent than the blue moon itself is the falling of two blue moon in one year. This is said to take place once every 19 years, with the next to take place in the year 2018. When two blue moons fall in one calander year, it is typical that they take place in the months of January and March. In order for a double blue moon to happen, the month of February must have no full moon at all. This allows the lunar cycle to complete itself.