By — Andrew Mach Andrew Mach Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/blue-moon-see-photos-around-world-fridays-lunar-rarity Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Once in a blue moon: See photos of Friday’s lunar rarity around the world Nation Aug 1, 2015 1:07 PM EDT A blue moon, which refers to the second of two full moons appearing in the same calendar month, was seen Friday night for the first time since 2012. While most years have 12 full moons, this year has 13. Don’t let the name fool you, though. Most blue moons are pale gray, resembling a moon on any other night, but on truly rare occasions blue-colored moons can appear, usually after volcanic eruptions. The phenomenon happens every two years on average, according to NASA, and the next one isn’t due until 2018. Here are photos of the lunar event from around the world. The Blue Moon is seen next to the Statue of Liberty in New York July 31, 2015. Photo by Eduardo Munoz/Reuters. A cyclist rides his mountain bike as the Blue Moon, rises in a park in Rome, Italy, July 31, 2015. Photo by Max Rossi/Reuters. The Blue Moon is seen over Loosely Row, near Princes Risborough, southeast England, July 31, 2015. Photo by Eddie Keogh/Reuters. The blue moon rises over people gathered on Glastonbury Tor in Somerset, England. Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images. The Eurotunnel terminal is illuminated by the blue moon on July 31, 2015 in Folkestone, England. Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images. By — Andrew Mach Andrew Mach Andrew Mach is a former Digital Editor for PBS NewsHour in New York City, where he manages the online editorial direction of the national broadcast's weekend edition. Formerly, Mach was a news editor and staff writer for NBC News. He's also written for the Christian Science Monitor in Boston and had stints at ABC News, the Washington Post and German network ZDF in Berlin, in addition to reporting for an investigative journalism project in Phoenix. Mach was a recipient of the 2016 Kiplinger Fellowship, the 2015 RIAS German/American Exchange fellowship by the Radio Television Digital News Foundation and the 2012 Berlin Capital Program Fulbright. He attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and is a native of Aberdeen, South Dakota. @andrewjmach
A blue moon, which refers to the second of two full moons appearing in the same calendar month, was seen Friday night for the first time since 2012. While most years have 12 full moons, this year has 13. Don’t let the name fool you, though. Most blue moons are pale gray, resembling a moon on any other night, but on truly rare occasions blue-colored moons can appear, usually after volcanic eruptions. The phenomenon happens every two years on average, according to NASA, and the next one isn’t due until 2018. Here are photos of the lunar event from around the world. The Blue Moon is seen next to the Statue of Liberty in New York July 31, 2015. Photo by Eduardo Munoz/Reuters. A cyclist rides his mountain bike as the Blue Moon, rises in a park in Rome, Italy, July 31, 2015. Photo by Max Rossi/Reuters. The Blue Moon is seen over Loosely Row, near Princes Risborough, southeast England, July 31, 2015. Photo by Eddie Keogh/Reuters. The blue moon rises over people gathered on Glastonbury Tor in Somerset, England. Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images. The Eurotunnel terminal is illuminated by the blue moon on July 31, 2015 in Folkestone, England. Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images.