Eclipse 2018: Supermoon, a Blue Moon and Blood Moon
The supermoon put on quite a show, visible from the back portal here in Eldorado at Santa Fe. This supermoon was the third in a trilogy, a series of three supermoons appearing on the celestial stage on December 3, 2017, January 1, 2018, and January 31, 2018.
The rare total eclipse took place on Wednesday January 31, combining three lunar phenomenons: A supermoon, a blue moon and a blood moon.
A supermoon is a Moon that is full when it is also at or near its closest point in its orbit around Earth. Since the Moon’s orbit is elliptical, one side (apogee) is about 30,000 miles (50,000 km) farther from Earth than the other (perigee).
The blue moon – the second full moon in a calendar month – orbits closer to the Earth than usual, making it seem up to 14 percent larger in the sky.
The total lunar eclipse is often described a blood moon because of they way the moon turns a gorgeous coppery red.
