What Is A Seasonal \u2018Blue Moon?\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\nThe second celestial event this weekend is a seasonal Blue Moon \u2014 the third full moon in a season containing four full moons.<\/p>\n
Unlike the phrase \u201conce in a blue moon\u201d suggests, Blue Moons are not especially rare. Seasonal Blue Moons occur roughly every two to three years, though pairing one with Manhattanhenge creates an unusually photogenic skywatching weekend.<\/p>\n
The moon itself will not appear blue in color. Instead, observers can expect to see a bright full moon rising in the southeast after sunset, complementing Manhattanhenge\u2019s golden-orange glow earlier in the evening. The full moon will, of course, occur on the opposite side of the sky to the setting sun. After all, that is why it is full.<\/p>\n
Where To See Manhattanhenge<\/strong><\/p>\nThe best views are from Manhattan\u2019s broad east-west thoroughfares with unobstructed views toward New Jersey across the Hudson River.<\/p>\n
Recommended locations include:<\/p>\n
\n- 14th Street<\/li>\n
- 23rd Street<\/li>\n
- 34th Street<\/li>\n
- 42nd Street<\/li>\n
- 57th Street<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The American Museum of Natural History also recommends the Tudor City Overpass in Manhattan and Hunter\u2019s Point South Park in Queens.<\/p>\n
Neil deGrasse Tyson, who popularized the term \u201cManhattanhenge,\u201d has previously described 34th and 42nd Streets as especially dramatic because of views framed by the Empire State Building and Chrysler Building.<\/p>\n
Why Manhattanhenge Happens<\/strong><\/p>\nThe event is ultimately caused by Earth\u2019s tilted axis and the changing position of the sunset throughout the year.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe sunset point actually creeps day to day along the horizon,\u201d explains the American Museum of Natural History. The sun sets due west only on the equinoxes in March and September. At all other times of the year, its setting position shifts north or south.<\/p>\n
As the summer solstice approaches, the sunset point moves farther northwest each evening. Because Manhattan\u2019s grid is angled 30 degrees from true north, the alignment occurs in late May and again in July rather than exactly on the solstice itself.<\/p>\n
For many New Yorkers, however, the science is secondary to the spectacle \u2014 a brief moment when the city\u2019s architecture and the movements of the solar system appear perfectly synchronized. Prepare for crowds.<\/p>\n
The \u2018Manhattanhenge Effect\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\nManhattanhenge is not limited to just two evenings each year. The sun gradually moves through the grid system over several weeks, creating a \u201cManhattanhenge Effect.\u201d Beginning in late May and continuing through July 12, sunset viewers can observe the sun changing position slightly each evening. Before the summer solstice, the sun appears progressively farther north at sunset. After the solstice, it slowly shifts southward again, eventually recreating the precise Manhattanhenge alignment in July.<\/p>\n
The result is a 45-day period of dramatic sunsets that transform Manhattan into a natural solar observatory.<\/p>\n
Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The setting sun moves across 42nd Street as people stand on the Pershing Square Bridge on Park Avenue…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":504052,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[270],"tags":[1782,18,19,17,218949,218947,218948,968,969,218950,218952,133,451,16906,218951],"class_list":["post-504051","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-space","tag-blue-moon","tag-eire","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-kiss-the-grid","tag-manhattanhenge","tag-manhattanhenge-2026","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-city-alignment","tag-once-in-a-blue-moon","tag-science","tag-space","tag-stargazing","tag-when-is-blue-moon"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116642907139456779","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/504051","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=504051"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/504051\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/504052"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=504051"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=504051"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=504051"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Manhattanhenge](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779829392_8_0x0.jpg\")
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