Perseid meteor shower and Blue Moon are among the astronomical events in August 2024
From a popular summer meteor shower to the seasonal blue moonrise, here are the top astronomy events for August 2024.
If you have noticed the moon being particularly bright in the last few days, you are not alone.
This brightness is due to the upcoming supermoon, the first of the year, which will light up the night sky next weekend.
This is what happened:
Why is the moon so bright tonight?
The next full moon will be on Monday, August 19, 2024.
Starting in the afternoon of August 18, the moon will appear full and will remain so until about 2:30 p.m. on August 20.
When the moon is almost full, it is more visible at night and appears brighter in the sky.
This is also the first supermoon of the year, which makes the moon appear brighter.
What is a supermoon?
A supermoon occurs when the moon is closest to Earth in its orbit and is full at the same time.
This makes the moon appear both brighter and larger than a normal full moon. This phenomenon is the reason why the moon can appear exceptionally bright when it is in its full moon form.
Why is the August moon called the Sturgeon Moon?
The Sturgeon Moon gets its name from the giant sturgeons that once abounded in the Great Lakes at this time of year and were easily caught.
For Native American tribes and early settlers, these fish were a staple food source. Today, sturgeon are much rarer due to overfishing, but their legacy lives on in the name of this moon.
Why is the blue moon red?
In addition to being a supermoon, this August full moon is also a seasonal blue moon. This term refers to the third full moon in a season of four full moons. Despite its name, however, the moon will not actually be blue. On rare occasions, the moon can appear blue when viewed through particles such as smoke and dust in the atmosphere, which filter out red and yellow wavelengths.
The moon may also appear red this month, as the summer heat and dryness create a haze in the atmosphere that gives it a fiery glow. Because of this red hue, the August full moon is sometimes called the “Red Moon.”
When is the next full moon?
The next full moon, the Harvest Moon, will occur on Tuesday, September 17th at 10:34 p.m.
Maria Francis is a Pennsylvania-based journalist who covers current affairs in the Mid-Atlantic region.
