Rare Super Blue Moon Will Shine In The Sky This Week, Details Inside

Skygazers are in for a celestial treat this week as they will witness the rare super blue moon on August 30. Anyone with a clear view of the moon that night can see a slightly brighter and bigger full moon than normal.

This full Moon will be the second full Moon in August, making it a Blue Moon by the newer definition introduced by Sky & Telescope magazine in 1946, according to space agency NASA.

The first supermoon of August occurred on the first day of the month when the moon was 357,530km away from the Earth. The second one will take place on August 30, and the moon will be even closer - 357,244 km from the Earth.

What is a blue moon?

According to NASA, the phenomenon occurs when the Moon's orbit is closest (known as perigee) to Earth at the same time the Moon is full. On August 30, the moon will be even closer - 357,244 km - from the Earth.

These figures compare with a distance of about 405,696km when the moon is at its furthest point from Earth.

There are two types of blue moon - seasonal and monthly - according to space.com.

Skygazers can look to the east just after sunset to find the blue moon.

According to Space.com, the blue moon will also be joined by a special guest in the sky: Saturn. The ringed gas giant will be just a few days past opposition, the point at which it lies directly opposite the sun as seen from Earth, making it especially bright in the night sky.

The media outlet says that blue moons occur relatively frequently, astronomically speaking, happening once every two to three years.

The last Blue Moon rose in August 2021, and the next is expected to rise in August 2024.

According to NASA, there are roughly 29.5 days between full moons, so February will never experience a monthly Blue Moon as it only has 28 days in a common year and 29 in a leap year.

Sometimes February doesn't have a Full Moon at all, this is known as a Black Moon, according to Time and Date.