Where is the Moon Goddess?

A rare sky spectacle will occur Monday night that (probably) won't happen again for years:

A full moon that can be called both a "supermoon" and "blue moon" will grace the night skies over the U.S.

Dubbed a "super blue moon," the rare combination occurs when the different cycles of blue and supermoons happen to align on the calendar, says NASA's Noah Petro, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter project scientist.

If that's not confusing enough, astronomers also have varying definitions for what counts as a supermoon and what counts as a blue moon. (Just last year a full moon met the criteria for both, by some definitions). Here's why Monday's full moon is special:

What's super about it? Its size from proximity

When the moon’s orbit brings it closer to Earth than usual, this cosmic combo is called a supermoon. A supermoon occurs when the moon’s orbit is closest to Earth at the same time the moon is full.

The term was coined by astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979. "Different publications use slightly different thresholds for deciding when a full moon is close enough to the Earth to qualify as a supermoon," NASA explains.

"Because the orbit of the moon is not a perfect circle, the moon is sometimes closer to the Earth than at other times during its orbit."

When the moon reaches its closest point to Earth, about 226,000 miles away, full moons appear larger and brighter than at other times. A supermoon will appear 30% brighter and 14% larger than a typical full moon.

Yes, look! It's all blue in color and cloudy!

There are two types of blue moons, seasonal and monthly. The one Monday will be of the seasonal variety. A seasonal blue moon occurs when there are four full moons in a single season (on this occasion, summer). When this happens, the third of the four is considered a blue moon.

The second definition – which arose from a misunderstanding of the original – is the monthly blue moon, referring to the second full moon in any single calendar month.

In either case, blue moons earn their reputation for being rare because of a quirk in the typical rhythm of one full moon per month [which always only had one full moon until the Vatican thrust the Gregorian Calendar on the world and divorced us from our planet's natural timekeeper].

The moon's cycle takes 29.5 days [28 days by our count of four weeks in a moonth, which means the time between full moons].

But, as Missouri State University Professor of Astrophysics Mike Reed notes, months [in the convoluted Gregorian Calendar] can have 28, 29, 30, or 31 days [to keep the number of days in a year with only 12 rather than the natural 13 moons that there should or used to be, given than 13x28=364+1 New Year turnaround day].

The two cycles create odd mismatches resulting in one more moon in a season or month than is typical – and that's a blue moon. Months usually have only one full moon – unless there's a (monthly) blue moon.

And seasons typically have three full moons – unless there's a (seasonal) blue moon.

Blue moons are not blue in color. Monday's full moon is unlikely to appear blue: Blue-colored moons in photos are usually made using special blue camera filters or photo editing apps.

How rare is a super blue moon? When will the next one occur? "It's tricky to answer, because it depends on your definition of a supermoon and a blue moon," Edward Bloomer, senior astronomy manager at the U.K.'s Royal Observatory Greenwich told USA TODAY via e-mail.

The answer is different depending on whether you're talking about a seasonal blue moon or a monthly blue moon. If you tweak what counts as a supermoon, the answer also changes.

In general, a blue moon happens once every two or three years on average, according to NASA. The time between super blue moons can be as much as 20 years – but in general, 10 years is the average.

So when will the next super blue moon actually occur? A safe bet is January 2037, according to NASA. However, depending on what you count as a super blue moon, you may hear of another one rising before then. Source

The Buddha under full moon (JUNAIDI/DeviantArt)

Every seven days, observant Buddhists honor the lunar observance day (the sabbath, which stands for "Saturday," the holy day of the Bible in Abrahamic faiths before it was changed to the Son's day without anybody noticing other than Jews, Seventh Day Adventists, and diehard Christian sects). This is weekly and in accord with the phases of the Moon (Soma/Chandra, Luna) everyone can look up and see. Of all four in a month, of particular significance is the one that falls on the full moon. It is kept in the same way, observing the Eight Precepts and "fasting" after noon (only eating between sunup and midday). It is a day to visit the monastery (vihara), nunnery, pagoda, or temple to study, hear the Dharma (Dhamma in the form of Bana or instruction), ask questions, practice meditation, and observe the additional precepts.

Nick Pearce analyzes Neolithic standing stones in Orkney

Remarkable new scientific research at Stonehenge has revealed an extraordinary new mystery. Mineralogical tests on the massive six-tonne stone at the heart of the monument show that this central rock, known as the altar stone, was brought to Stonehenge from the far north of Scotland.

The altar stone is arguably the most ritually important stone in Stonehenge, because it is the rock that marks the intersection of the prehistoric temple’s two most important celestial alignments – the winter solstice sunrise to summer solstice sunset alignment, and the summer solstice sunrise to winter solstice sunset alignment.

It’s already known that some of the monument’s smaller stones were brought to the site from southwest Wales, around 120 miles away. But moving a rock from northern mainland Scotland or Orkney would have involved a journey of well over 500 miles.

The discovery has huge implications and is likely to transform archaeologists’ perceptions around key aspects of life in prehistoric Britain.

Up to now, most scholars have assumed that British Neolithic society was exclusively local or regional (based on tribal, clan or similar identities), but the newly discovered Stonehenge-Scotland link, when combined with the Welsh origin of some of the Stonehenge stones, suggests that there might also have been a pan-British aspect to how Neolithic Britons lived.

The newly revealed Scottish link implies that 4,500 years ago, there was already at least some political and religious cooperation across Britain. That’s because the Neolithic people who transported the six-tonne rock from northern Scotland or Orkney to southern England must have known that Stonehenge existed, that it was being expanded, and precisely what shape and size of giant rock was required.

That suggests geopolitical cooperation, or even some religious commonality. More: Mystery of Stonehenge deepens after ‘jaw-dropping’ discovery

There are 12 lunar calendars still in use around the world. Welcome to this deep dive into the fascinating world of lunar calendars. Let’s explore how the moon’s journey has shaped timekeeping traditions across cultures and civilizations from antiquity to the present day. As we traverse this celestial journey, we’ll highlight the 12 significant lunar calendars that are still in use around the world. Ever marvel at the serene beauty of the moon and ponder its influence on our lives and cultures? Many have. From time immemorial, humans have been intrigued by the moon’s celestial dance and one of the ways this fascination manifested itself was through the creation of lunar calendars. A lunar calendar is a timekeeping system that is based on the moon’s phases (though many are actually lunisolar). While the world has largely transitioned to the solar Gregorian calendar for everyday use, many cultures and religions around the globe continue to rely on lunar calendars for various purposes. These calendars are not relics of a bygone era but vibrant aspects of contemporary life, underscoring the enduring resonance of lunar timekeeping. 

The Buddha, Gandhara bust

Thailand officially uses the solar-based Gregorian calendar for civil and business purposes to conduct business with the West. But the Thai Buddhist lunar calendar continues to hold a vital place in cultural and religious life. Its roots are deeply embedded in the country’s Theravada Buddhist traditions and agricultural practices, the Thai lunar calendar keeps track of time and also aids in shaping and preserving the cultural identity of Thai communities.

The Thai Buddhist calendar, also known as the Thai lunar calendar, is primarily a lunisolar system. Each month commences with the new moon, culminating in lunar months that span either 29 or 30 days in length, closely aligning with the moon’s synodic period.

However, to reconcile the 11-day difference between a lunar year (12 lunar months) and a solar year, the Thai lunar calendar employs a system of intercalated months, adding an extra month about every two to three years.

A unique aspect of the Thai calendar is its dual year count. Alongside the Common Era (CE) count, it also features a Buddhist Era (BE) count, which begins with the enlightenment of the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama.

To find the Buddhist year, 543 years are added to the Gregorian year. For example, the year 2023 CE is 2566 BE in the Buddhist calendar.

Mahavira mirrored the Buddha

Jainism (the religion most analogous to Buddhism, as the only other surviving shramanic or wandering ascetic tradition, both of which rejected the Vedas as the ultimate source of knowledge, whereas Hinduism embraces them as its root texts) has a calendar.

It is the prime example of a lunar calendar that seamlessly weaves religious practice, timekeeping, and the rhythms of the natural world.

Used by the Jain community predominantly in India but also worldwide, the Jain calendar plays a vital role in religious observances and cultural practices, thereby upholding the enduring relevance of lunar calendars.

Gymnosophist (naked philosopher) Mahavira

The Jain calendar, also known as the Jain Panchang or Jain Panchangam, is a lunisolar calendar that balances the lunar year’s shorter duration with the solar year’s longer span, by incorporating an extra month, or “adhik maas,” approximately every three years.

This intercalary month helps align the calendar with the seasons, a key factor considering many Jain observances are intimately tied to seasonal cycles.

In accordance with lunar cycles, each month in the Jain calendar commences with the new moon, resulting in lunar months of approximately 29.5 days, closely mirroring the moon’s synodic period.

The month is divided into two halves, the Shukla Paksha, or “bright fortnight,” and the Krishna Paksha, or “dark fortnight,” each lasting around 15 days and ending with either the full moon or new moon. More: The 12 Lunar Calendars Still in Use Around the World

Researcher Gregg Braden

(OurTimelessWisdom) Feel like time is speeding up, like a calm stream is turning into a raging river? It's leaving everyone wondering why.

Discover the unexpected reasons behind this sensation and what it means. Join OTW to delve into ancient shamanic prophecies, Hopi Prophecy Rock, and Hermetic principles to understand the cosmic influences accelerating our perception of time.

Gregg Braden’s insights reveal how these changes impact consciousness and our daily lives, urging us to embrace community, inner strength, and conscious adaptation.

Human remains were first discovered in the ancient Maya city of Chichén Itzá (across the way from US shores on the Yucatan Peninsula in the shared Gulf of Mexico) in the 1960s while workers excavated land to build a proposed airport runway.

In the spring of 1967, workers building a small airport behind Chichén Itzá, the ancient Maya city in Mexico, ran into a problem: Their excavations had uncovered human remains in the pathway of the proposed runway.

The airport was set to serve V.I.P.s who wanted to visit Chichén Itzá. But with the remains so close to a major archaeological site, the work had to be halted until the bones could be examined.

Any hope for a quick resolution dissolved when archaeologists who were called to the scene uncovered a chultún — an underground rainwater-storage container that, in Maya mythology, was viewed as an entrance to the subterranean [realm of reptilians now called the] land of the dead [location of Atzlan, where the tribes that came to Mexico originated in lore].

Connected to the cistern was a cave containing more than 100 sets of human remains, almost all belonging to children.

Who built this perfect architecture? ETs from?

In a push to finish the airport, researchers were given just two months to excavate and exhume the cache of bones. Nearly 60 years later, ancient DNA extracted from 64 of the children is offering new insights into the religious rituals of the ancient Maya and their ties to modern descendants.

In a paper published on Wednesday (6/12/24) in the journal Nature, an international cohort of researchers revealed that the children — presumed to be sacrificial victims killed between 500 and 900 A.D. — were all local Maya boys (not virgin girls as we usually are told to imagine) that may have been specifically selected to be sacrificed in sibling pairs.

“These are the first ancient Maya genomes to be published,” said Johannes Krause, an archaeogeneticist at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany.

The DNA work provided a previously unseen glimpse into the identities of the sacrificed children. “One feels quite moved by such a finding,” Dr. Krause said, noting that he himself has a young son.

The search into the genome of the Maya boys did not start as an exercise in ancient Maya rituals.

Rich pre-Columbian culture we are not told about

In the mid-2000s, Rodrigo Barquera — now an immunogeneticist at the Max Planck Institute — was hoping to discover the genetic legacy of Mesoamerica’s deadliest pandemic.

In 1545, an outbreak of Salmonella enterica spread like wildfire across [Mesoamerica or] what is now Mexico.

Over the next century, the disease killed up to 90 percent of the Indigenous population. Pandemics like these often leave their mark on the immune genes of survivors.

To uncover this genetic legacy, Dr. Barquera and his colleagues needed to compare the DNA from the precolonial remains with that of people who were born after the calamity.