Sunday, May 31, 2026

Blue Micromoon - May (31) 2026

"Osmanthus flowers fall alone;
The blooming mountains are calm at night.
The moon ascends, alarming birds,
That chirp in spring on water white."
("Bird-Twittering Creek" (鸟鸣涧) by the famous Tang Dynasty poet Wang Wei)

Rob and I woke up the day before, when the moon was cresting full, to join a Dawn Chorus bird walk with Benni on the grounds of the TBG. At the start of the walk, Benni read a poem from 13th century Persia that he'd translated.

As we were gathered, a heron flew overhead. Wandering the paths we saw finches, cardinals, red-wing blackbirds, robins, song sparrows, yellow warblers.... and happily, a red tanager. 


On May 31, 2026, the night sky featured a rare Blue Micromoon. It was the second full moon of the month (following the Flower Moon on May 1), which gives it the "Blue" designation, and it occurred near apogee (its farthest point from Earth), making it the smallest and faintest full moon of 2026. [1, 2, 3]

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