The Blue Moon of May and Lord Raffles

[starguard]

There is a Full Moon tonight. Even worse, its a Blue Moon (the second full moon in the same month). It has been historically proven that this type of moon has a very special way of effecting the mentally Challenged in very odd and unique ways. Some run through the streets naked, Some howl at the moon, and some go rampant on the internet. Our dear Lord Raffles seems to be that one special case where all three reactions apply. Therfore we shall all keep these facts in mind when we read through all the things that he has posted tonight. It has also been confined in me through various PM's that he has a secret fetish for women of color and has babies from several (Some half Japanese, Some half Mexican, and a multitude of half Black Children running all over the country) that all make him cringe everytime they yell "Daddy, wheres Momma's Child Support Check".

Therefore it shall be fully understood that until the Blue Moon we see in the night time sky recedes, Lord Raffles shall continue to post the type of things he has posted without being in sound mind and body, and without having any control over himself whatsoever. Lets just hope that before the moon changes, he doesn't start to foam at the mouth and decides to start attacking old ladies on the streets at night.


GO LORD RAFFLES

 

[The Dork Lord]

That's a lie.

the next full moon is the 2nd.

 

[jack]

Did LSD affect you like this Jeff?

 

[The Dork Lord]

I never hallucinated that much

just a mild body buzz

few flashbacks

but I never did that much

 

[starguard]

That's a lie.

isn't everything in here *LOL*

the next full moon is the 2nd.

Not according to these guys

The Truth Behind This Month's Blue MoonBy Joe Rao

SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist
SPACE.com
Fri May 25, 12:45 AM ET



Thursday, May 31 brings us the second of two full Moons for North Americans this month. Some almanacs and calendars assert that when two full Moons occur within a calendar month, that the second full Moon is called the "Blue Moon."


The full Moon that night will likely look no different than any other full Moon. But the Moon can change color in certain conditions.


After forest fires or volcanic eruptions, the Moon can appear to take on a bluish or even lavender hue. Soot and ash particles, deposited high in the Earth's atmosphere can sometimes make the Moon appear bluish. Smoke from widespread forest fire activity in western Canada created a blue Moon across eastern North America in late September 1950. In the aftermath of the massive eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in June 1991 there were reports of blue moons (and even blue Suns) worldwide.


Origin of the term


The phrase "Once in a blue Moon" was first noted in 1824 and refers to occurrences that are uncommon, though not truly rare. Yet, to have two full Moons in the same month is not as uncommon as one might think. In fact, it occurs, on average, about every 32 months. And in the year 1999, it occurred twice in a span of just three months!


For the longest time no one seemed to have a clue as to where the "Blue Moon Rule" originated. Many years ago in the pages of Natural History magazine, I speculated that the rule might have evolved out of the fact that the word "belewe" came from the Old English, meaning, "to betray." "Perhaps," I suggested, "the second full Moon is 'belewe' because it betrays the usual perception of one full moon per month."


But as innovative as my explanation was, it turned out to be completely wrong.


More mistakes


It was not until the year 1999 that the origin of the calendrical term "Blue Moon" was at long last discovered. It was during the time frame from 1932 through 1957 that the Maine Farmers' Almanac suggested that if one of the four seasons (winter, spring, summer or fall) contained four full Moons instead of the usual three, that the third full Moon should be called a "Blue Moon."


But thanks to a couple of misinterpretations of this arcane rule, first by a writer in a 1946 issue of Sky & Telescope magazine, and much later, in 1980 in a syndicated radio program, it now appears that the second full Moon in a month is the one that's now popularly accepted as the definition of a "Blue Moon."


This time around, the Moon will turn full on May 31 at 9:04 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (6:04 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time).


But for those living in Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia, that same full Moon occurs after midnight, on the calendar date of June 1. So in these regions of world, this will not be second of two full Moons in May, but the first of two full Moons in June. So, if (for example) you live London, you'll have to wait until June 30 to declare that the Moon is "officially" blue.

Joe Rao serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for The New York Times and other publications, and he is also an on-camera meteorologist for News 12 Westchester, New York.

 

[jack]

You're really a fucking idiot.

Let's start with the basic astronomical facts. The four Full Moons in May, June and July 2007 are as follows:


2 May at 10:09 GMT
1 June at 01:04 GMT
30 June at 13:49 GMT
30 July at 00:48 GMT

These dates and times have been calculated rigorously using the same methods as those employed by the United States Naval Observatory and by Her Majesty's Nautical Almanac Office. They are given in Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) which is the standard time zone used by astronomers worldwide.

Notice that the second Full Moon in the list occurs early in the morning of 1 June. Changing the time zone by two hours or more to the west of Greenwich changes the month in which the Full Moon falls. In the Americas, the Full Moon is on the evening of 31 May, not 1 June.

Here are those four Full Moons again, but with the dates and times adjusted for several major time zones around the world. For each time zone, the two Full Moons which fall in the same calendar month are highlighted.


City Time zone Full Moon 1 Full Moon 2 Full Moon 3 Full Moon 4

Places East of Greenwich
Auckland GMT + 12 hours May 2
22:09 June 1
13:04 July 1
01:49 July 30
12:48
Sydney GMT + 10 hours May 2
20:09 June 1
11:04 June 30
23:49 July 30
10:48
Tokyo GMT + 9 hours May 2
19:09 June 1
10:04 June 30
22:49 July 30
09:48
Moscow¹ GMT + 4 hours May 2
14:09 June 1
05:04 June 30
17:49 July 30
04:48
Riyadh GMT + 3 hours May 2
13:09 June 1
04:04 June 30
16:49 July 30
03:48
The Greenwich Meridian
London¹ GMT + 1 hour May 2
11:09 June 1
02:04 June 30
14:49 July 30
01:48
Places West of Greenwich
New York¹ GMT - 4 hours May 2
06:09 May 31
21:04 June 30
09:49 July 29
20:48
Chicago¹ GMT - 5 hours May 2
05:09 May 31
20:04 June 30
08:49 July 29
19:48
Los Angeles¹ GMT - 7 hours May 2
03:09 May 31
18:04 June 30
06:49 July 29
17:48
Hawaii GMT - 10 hours May 2
00:09 May 31
15:04 June 30
03:49 July 29
14:48
¹ These places observe daylight saving time in May, June and July.

As you can see, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia see the Blue Moon on 30 June, whilst the Americas see it on 31 May, and New Zealand must wait until 30 July to see its Blue Moon.

 

[jack]

Now shut the fuck up, asshat.

 

[starguard]