A Black Moon is Coming on July 31 – Here's What It Means

You’ve heard of blue moons, harvest moons and even wolf moons. But what is a black moon?

If you live in North America, a black moon is coming to a night sky near you on July 31, making its first appearance in three years. But what on Earth (er, in space) is a black moon?

A black moon is the rare occurrence of a second new moon in a month, in which the moon is barely visible to the naked eye. It’s exactly like a regular new moon – which typically happens once every month – only this time, it happens twice.

While one lunar cycle averages around 29 days from start to finish, some months in the Gregorian calendar are slightly longer. Thus, about every 32 months, we happen to get two full moons or two new moons. The second full moon in a month is called a blue moon, while the second new moon in a month is dubbed a black moon. A black moon can also refer to a month without any new moons (a much less common phenomenon, which is only possible in February because of its fewer days).

If you want to get fancy with it, you can call tonight’s moon a “Black Super New Moon” as the moon will appear bigger than usual because it’s closer to the Earth. However, as with every new moon, you’ll probably see nothing when you look up into the night sky. Go figure.

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