Once In a Blue Moon......

Although the full moon that you'll see on Aug. 31, 2012, will look like an ordinary full moon, it will actually be a Blue Moon.

What is a Blue Moon? The most common definition of a blue moon is the second full moon in a calendar month. For a blue moon to occur the first of the full moons must appear at or near the beginning of the month so that the second will fall within the same month (the average span between two moons is 29.5 days). The full Moon on Aug. 31, 2012, will be this type of blue moon; it will be the second full moon in one month.

How often does a Blue Moon occur? Over the next 20 years there will be about 15 blue moons. No blue moon of any kind will occur in the years 2014, and 2017. The more recent phenomenon, where the blue moon is considered to be the second full moon in a calendar month, last occurred on December 31, 2009. Two full moons in one month may occur in any month out of the year except for February, which is shorter than the lunar cycle.

The rare phenomenon of two blue moons occurring in the same year happens approximately once every 19 years. 1999 was the last time a blue moon appeared twice, in January and March. The months of the double blue moons are almost always January and March. That is because the short month that falls in between them, February, is a key ingredient in this once-every-19-year phenomenon. For January and March to each have two full moons, it's necessary for February to have none at all. Since February is usually 28 days long, and the average span between full moons is 29.5 days, if a full moon occurs at the end of January, it's possible for the next full moon to skip February entirely and fall in the beginning of March.

"Blue Moon" appears to have been an expression long before it developed its calendar meaning. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first reference to a blue moon comes from a proverb recorded in 1528:"If they say the moon is blue, we must believe that it is true." In the 19th century, the phrase until a blue moon developed, meaning "never." The phrase, once in a blue moon today has come to mean "every now and then" or "rarely."

We invite you to visit our website (www.underoneumbrella.com) and view all of the variety of styles and colors from which to choose from...including different shades of...blue, or white, or gray (depending on the season, day of the month or year we are in!).

"Blue moon

You saw me standing alone

Without a dream in my heart

Without a love of my own" - Elvis Presley