Blue Moon Eclipse

If you thought the New Year’s Day supermoon was cool, wait till you see this.

This year starts with a big moon bang. January kicked off with a supermoon and will end with a blue moon eclipse! A blue moon isn't actually blue in color. It's meaning is different. In a normal year, there are 12 full moons. Each season (winter, spring, summer, fall) should contain 3 full moons. The word "blue" comes an old English word meaning "betrayer." An extra full moon during that stretch, or 2 full moons in a calendar month, makes them unusual as in "tricky" or "betrayer".

A "blue moon" happens about once every 2.7 years. That's cool but nothing like what will take place on the 31st of January 2018. The next full moon will not only be the second in the month, it will be another supermoon, plus there will be a lunar eclipse! That hasn't happened in over 150 years! It's a lunar trifecta! Catch this amazing event in the early morning hours of Jan. 31.  Set an alarm for about 3:51 a.m. Mountian Time. The eclipse will peak at about 6:30 that morning. Then pop back in bed.

There's no need to leave town to see this event because the size of the moon will make watching the eclipse easy. However, the further away you get from city lights, the better the viewing. It will be too cold for camping out but a drive up to a cool vantage point on the Colorado National Monument or The Grand Mesa will make this special lunar happening even more memorable.

I wonder if the Blue Moon downtown Grand Junction will be featuring any Blue Moon beer specials on the evening of the 31st? Only seems right don't you think? Somebody should call them.

Credit: Denver 7