Its Electrifying (Blue Moon Edition)

Full moon in popular culture is about intensity, explosions and plain old crazy. I am a strong believer that there are things we haven’t figured out yet. May be we are all made from stars because I’ve seen far too many mood explosions on Full Moon. Well August has one of the rare Blue Moon’s occurring on 31st August, 2012 (tomorrow).

According to Wral.com –This naming is based on a mistake more than 65 years old. The color the moon appears to us is controlled not by calendar but by the Earth’s atmosphere. The only way it will appear blue in color is if atmospheric conditions scatter the moonlight just right. Ash from a massive forest fire or volcano which has been trapped in the upper atmosphere has created such conditions in the past.

Friday is your last chance to see a “blue moon” until July 31, 2015, but this really isn’t that big of a deal. Blue moons occur every 2.7 years on average under this definition.

The first of these two August full moons occurred on 1st August. In honor of the madness and explosive moods, I want to share some lovely photos of lightning taken around the world.

Worldwide, lightning strikes around 50 times every second (more than 4 million times every day). Electrical imbalances generated by turbulent skies are suddenly balanced by a spectacular discharge tracing across a darkened sky — a display that is both frightening and awe-inspiring. (The Atlantic)

A rainbow appears as lightning strikes after a rainstorm in Haikou, Hainan province, China, on May 13, 2012. (Reuters/China Daily)

An elusive “red sprite” flash, photographed by Expedition 31 astronauts aboard the International Space Station on April 30, 2012. The sprite (upper right) appears high above a lightning strike (bright spot in the clouds). Red sprites only last for a few milliseconds, sending pulses of electrical energy up toward the edge of space–the electrically charged layer known as the ionosphere–instead of down to Earth’s surface. More about this image on NASA’s Earth Observatory. (NASA)

A lightning bolt flashes above Independence Square near the landmark Palacio Salvo, in Montevideo, Uruguay, as a storm passes over the capital early on February 28, 2012. (Mariana Suarez/AFP/Getty Images)

Lightning over the Grand Tetons. Original here.

Lightning illuminates the sky above Donbass Arena during the Group D Euro 2012 soccer match Ukraine vs France in Donetsk, Ukraine, on June 15, 2012. The game was suspended due to heavy rain and thunder storm. (Reuters/Felix Ordonez)

Lightning strikes over buildings during a thunderstorm in Berlin, on June 29, 2012. (Reuters/Pawel Kopczynski)

Lighting strikes over Saint Joseph cathedral Hanoi, Vietnam, on July 14, 2012. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)

Lightning bolts crisscross the sky above Lahore City, Pakistan, during a thunderstorm that was followed with heavy rain on April 13, 2012. (Arif Ali/AFP/Getty Images)

A double rainbow appears after a heavy monsoon storms over Nipton Road in Searchlight, Nevada, on July 13, 2012. (Reuters/Gene Blevins)

The last image is just to remind everyone that there is always a rainbow after the storm. There are about 24 of these images over at The Atlantic. Check them out.

I highly recommend visiting my post from July 2012’s full moon. I shared some active volcano images shot by Nick Selway and CJ Kale. They are absolutely stunning and intense!