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What is a Blue Moon ?

A "Blue Moon" is a fairly infrequent phenomenon involving the appearance of an additional full moon within a given period. But which period — there are two definitions of the term, and one was borne out of a misunderstanding of the other.
The older meaning defines a Blue Moon as the third full moon in a season that has four full moons. Called a seasonal Blue Moon, this occurs about every 2.7 years. Why the third moon? Seasons normally have three full moons, and some of them, for traditional and religious reasons, must occur at specific times of the year.
The other meaning is that a Blue Moon is the second full moon within a single calendar month. This definition — a monthly Blue Moon — has gained popularity in recent years because of a misinterpretation of an almanac's original definition.
Blue Moons are not typically blue in color — that happens only, well, once in a Blue Moon, but there is the possibility for a hint of blue in any full moon.




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