Super moon

I have been fascinated with the tides and the moon since we got here. There are a couple of great websites that I use to see how the tides are when we walk. It was not a big deal when we got here and we would just walk but when we began our efforts to walk the coastline of the north island I began to look for a good site that would tell me when the tides were going to be acceptable for us to get around the points. The one thing I realized (which I probably should have learned while I was in school) is that when there is a full moon the tides have their highest highs and lowest lows. I had never known before that there would be a difference but there is and at times it is dramatic.

Take yesterday and today as an example. The low tide for last night was at 11:18 pm and it was at 1.9 feet. I am not sure what they use as a measure. The high tide was at 5:13 am today and it was at 9.2 feet so the difference is 7.3 feet. On Tuesday of this week, 25 June the low tide will be at 2:30 pm at .5 feet and the high will be at 8:37 pm at 10.6 feet for a difference of 10.1 feet.




The reason there is such a high and a low this week is because there is a super moon. That means that the moon is closer to the earth on this cycle that usual. It will appear 12-14% larger than normal. I guess that it does this at other times in the year but they do not coincide with a full moon so it is not noticeable. So if you get a chance look at the moon your Sunday night to see the sight.

Besides a super moon there is a blue moon.  There are several different definitions for a blue moon. One is that it is the second full moon in one month. So if a full moon was on 1 July then the next would be on 29 July.  The second would be a blue moon. Another definition is a bit harder to understand. Each season is three months long but at times in those three months there will be four instead of three full moons. The third of the four is referred to as a blue moon also.  There is a third blue moon and that occurs when the moon actually appears to be blue. That only happens when there are certain dust particles in the air and all sorts of other things have to line up for that to happen. This kind is not predictable and would not necessarily be world wide.  So to say that something happens once in a blue moon, they could be right.