Greetings,
Here are a few of my thoughts in response to your questions. I’m sure others will have more to share! (It may be easier to disconnect this discussion thread from the full-moon-at-beginning-of-month subject into a separate discussion about blue moons... perhaps the mods can help us there).
Blue Moons – there are several different definitions of what constitutes a “blue moon;” one common definition is when two consecutive new or full moons occur in the same sign within a “solar month” (that being, while the sun walks through a single sign, the new moon occurs at the beginning and again at the end of that period).
Another definition is when there are four full moons in a single solar season. Yet another describes a blue moon as two full moons in a calendar month (which I think is more of a colloquial definition than it is an astrological definition).
Ok, leaving all that confusion aside, the last blue moon (according to the first definition I suggested) occurred in 2006 to my knowledge:
The moon was new in Virgo on Wednesday, August 23rd, 2006 and again on Friday, September 22nd, 2006.
Try looking through your date book again, paying close attention to the sign the moon is in when it conjuncts and/or opposes the sun. If I have time, I’ll take a look as well and see what I can find. The colloquial use of “once in a blue moon,” referring to something rare, truly applies – I do not believe that every year has a blue moon, so 2007 may not.
You question about moon names is a fun one. I think I saw someone else in this thread who likes to name the new moons – I know many of us like to do the same. Lots of cultures assign their own names and symbolisms to lunar cycles, and if you want to have a little fun, you may enjoy this woman’s blog (she makes a long list of names associated with each full moon and posts them when they pass):
Beyond the Fields We Know
Beyond the Fields We Know – Label: “Moons”
For more basic information about lunar phases, here is a good place to look:
Phases of the Moon
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/moon_phases.html
They state that the moon has a “complete phase cycle of 29.5 days average duration.”
Here’s another site with more information with the numbers you seek:
Calendars – keeping track of time
http://www.science.org.au/nova/051/051key.htm
They estimate the lunar cycle “takes an average 29.530589 days,” and that the solar cycle is down to “365.24219 days;” if you read the article you’ll see that there is much discussion to be had concerning the latter number!
I hope that information helps!
dandelion
)