The So Called "Blue" Moon

It's a hoax! It's not blue at all. Same color as always. The blue moon is a term used for the rare times when there is a second full moon during the same month. So July 31, 2015, provided the second full moon of the month. It only occurs every few years, with the next blue moon scheduled to appear on January 31, 2018. Mark your calendars! Why the term blue? I have no clue.

As I waited for the moonrise, camera and tripod at the ready, it turns out the sunset might have put on a better show than the blue moon. Here's my favorite shot from the night... about 15 minutes before moonrise.

Finally, the moon makes a brief appearance, but only to disappear again a few minutes later into the clouds. I tried to be very strategic in my location for a moon shot. We were in town this weekend (not out at the desert, as you can probably tell). I knew the moon would be rising in the east, and even had the compass heading. I wanted an unobstructed eastern view, and ideally something of interest in the foreground of the shot. I decided on a parking structure rooftop near the train station that would give me a clear view of the old building with "Fullerton" on it's roof. Who knows, may be I could even get a train in the shot!

Well, if you look closely, there is a train in the shot. But because of the motion blur, it's hard to see.

Here's the "blue" moon later in the evening when it was higher in the sky.

With my telephoto lens, I felt like Jimmy Stewart in "Rear Window" as the Amtrak Surfliner pulled into the station. This photo was taken from the parking structure rooftop about 300 yards away. Hmm, that gives me an idea...

Two final shots at the train station. This is a freight train coming in at high speed without stopping at the station. Quite an experience to be standing within a couple yards of a train as it flies by!

Here's what a fast moving train looks like during a 1/2 second exposure... just a blur and hard to see!

Good night, blue moon!

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