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Credit & Copyright: Kevin Saragozza
Explanation:
The last full moon was doubly unusual.
First of all, it was a
blue moon.
A modern definition of a
blue
moon is a second full moon to occur during one
calendar month.
Since there are 13 full moons in 2023, one month has to have two -- and that month
was August.
The first full moon was on August 1 and named a
Sturgeon Moon.
The second reason that the last full moon was
unusual was because it was a
supermoon.
A modern definition of
supermoon is a moon that reaches its full
phase when it is relatively close to Earth -- and so
appears
a bit larger and brighter than average.
Pictured, the
blue supermoon of 2023
was imaged
hovering far behind a historic
castle and
lighthouse in
Syracuse,
Sicily,
Italy.
Gallery:
Selected August 2023 supermoon images submitted to APOD
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Moon
Publications with words: Moon
See also: