This August will be special because it begins on the night of the 2nd with a full Moon and ends on the 31st with a second full Moon . The coincidence of two full moons in the same calendar month is a rare phenomenon that astronomers call "Blue Moon". Since the lunar month lasts approximately 29.5 days-time it takes the satellite to go around the Earth and during which we see it in all its phases, from new to full, when the Moon is between Earth and the Sun- only in some months of 30 or 31 days does this coincidence take place.
The history of the "Blue Moon" dates back to 1883, when the eruption of the Indonesian volcano Krakatoa released huge amounts of ash into the atmosphere. According to NASA, the light from the Moon when passing through these ash clouds acquired a bluish, sometimes greenish tone for months. What's more, two years after the eruption, blue moons were still visible. Today the term is used with another meaning
The next time there will be two full moons in the same month will be in July 2015.
