Don’t miss your chance to see a blue supermoon from Kansas. Here’s when to look up

A rare blue moon will be visible from Kansas starting today, and it will appear bigger and brighter than a typical full moon.

The sturgeon moon, which is both a blue moon and a supermoon , technically will become full at 1:26 p.m. today, according to NASA. However, the best time to see it in Wichita will be around 8:30 p.m., when the moon rises here, according to the Farmers’ Almanac’s moonrise calculator .

The moon will appear full until early Wednesday morning. The National Weather Service forecasts mostly clear skies with a low around 68 degrees in Wichita on Monday night.

A supermoon is defined as either a new or full moon that occurs when the moon is within 90% of its closest approach to Earth, NASA says, making supermoons are the “biggest and brightest” full moons of the year.

This month’s moon is also referred to as the “sturgeon moon” because of the abundance of fish typically found in late summer, according to the Farmers’ Almanac.

Many moon names come from Indigenous cultures. The Farmers’ Almanac uses Indigenous moon names, along with monikers from colonial America and other North American sources.

August’s moon is also considered a blue moon by some astronomers, in addition to being a supermoon.

What is a blue moon?

There’s no universally agreed upon definition of a blue moon by astronomers.

One NASA article from August 2023 defines a blue moon as when we see a full moon twice in a single month , while a NASA article from this month defines it as the third full moon in a season with four full moons.

These are two common definitions of a blue moon; most astronomers use one or the other. It’s the second definition that would apply to this week’s moon, since it is the third full moon of the summer and there’s a fourth in September.

Neither of the definitions refer to a moon that is blue in color, although on rare occasions the moon can appear blue from Earth because you view it through a haze of dust particles in our atmosphere, according to Royal Museums Greenwich.

More full moons in 2024

Here’s when to see the rest of 2024’s full moons , according to Space.com:

• Sept. 17: harvest moon (supermoon and partial lunar eclipse)

• Oct. 17: hunter’s moon (supermoon)

• Nov. 15: beaver moon (supermoon)

• Dec. 15: cold moon

The Kansas Astronomical Observers will host monthly meetings 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday and Sept. 21 outside Lake Afton Public Observatory, and visitors are welcome.