This is The Weekend For A Blue Moon Over Michigan

No the moon will not be sad this weekend but it will be blue so have your telescope and camera ready.

First, what the heck is a blue moon?

Yes a blue moon is a song, but actually there are two different explanations for a blue moon. One is a seasonal blue moon that is the third full moon of an astronomical season that has four full moons. The second is a monthly blue moon that is the second full moon in a calendar month with two full moons. Two full moons in a calendar month only happens every couple years.

The full moon that is coming up this weekend, August 22 and 23 is a seasonal blue moon but it is also this year's sturgeon moon. The next seasonal blue moon won't happen until August 19 and 20 of 2024 but will also be a sturgeon moon.

According to WOOD, the moon will officially be full at 8:02 a.m. August 22. You get a bonus leading up to this weekend with a waxing moon appearing as it passes by Jupiter and Saturn. The nearly full moon will be below Saturn on August 20 and just below and to the right of Jupiter on August 21.

Here is a swinging blue moon in case you haven't heard of one of those:

There was already a full moon that happened just after the summer solstice that occurred on June 24 and there will be a fourth full moon just before the equinox on September 20.

Now where did the term "blue moon" come from? It actually originated from when smoke and ashes after a volcanic eruption turned the moon blue. That won't be the case this weekend, although the fires out west could have an affect on its color this weekend but nothing like a volcano.

In the meantime, the Perseid meteor shower did have its peak performance last week, this week there are a few leftovers if you happen to look up in the sky this week.