Through Google, I've found 2 differing definitions of a blue moon. The first is the widely accepted definition of 2 full moons appearing within one calendar month, and that's what tonight's Blue Moon is.
The second definition is the one I prefer. Usually, each season (the time between solstices and equinoxes) experiences 3 full moons. On occasion, a season will experience 4 full moons, and in this case the 3rd full moon is called the Blue Moon. Why they name the 3rd full moon Blue and not the 4th one? Who knows. If you do, please share that information!
In Witchcraft, Blue Moons hold three times the power of normal full moons, and any magick performed under the Blue Moon is said to have added potency and power.
I'll explain why I prefer the second definition of a Blue Moon that I gave. First, it's the astronomical definition according to Wikipedia. The popular definition is based on the Gregorian calendar and not on astronomy. Second, the Gregorian calendar hasn't been around as long as the seasons, solstices, and equinoxes, and we know that humankind has been following the seasons and celebrating the changing of the seasons for much longer than the Gregorian calendar has been around as evidenced by Stonehenge.
According to the astronomical definition of a Blue Moon, the next couple Blue Moons will appear as follows:
August 21, 2013 (next year!)
May 21, 2016
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