I was just listening to a mini-documentary about this. The astronomer said that using the term blue moon to describe two full moons in one month was based on an typographical error in the farmers almanac but that the definition stuck when it became a question in Trivial Pursuit.
Originally, a blue moon, wasn't a regular occurrence, but a time when the moon actually looked blue due to the ash or smoke in the air. It happened after Mt. St. Helens exploded.
Tonight is also special, because there is a partial lunar eclipse, and the combination of a blue moon (popular sense) and a lunar eclipse only happens once a century.
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Originally, a blue moon, wasn't a regular occurrence, but a time when the moon actually looked blue due to the ash or smoke in the air. It happened after Mt. St. Helens exploded.
Tonight is also special, because there is a partial lunar eclipse, and the combination of a blue moon (popular sense) and a lunar eclipse only happens once a century.
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