The first full moon of May is always known as the “Flower Moon” to signify the change of temperature and the rebirth of plant life now in the spring. May 15 saw not just a Flower Moon, but a Super Flower Blood Moon, there were a number of galactic events this last weekend that made for a great view of the night’s sky. The biggest of the events on May 15 was a full eclipse of the moon, which many residents of Cibola County stayed out very late to admire.
Super moons occur when the moon is very close to the Earth, this was the case on May 15. Because of the moon’s proximity to earth, the moon appeared significantly larger in the night’s sky than normal. When the eclipse began, the moon took on a bright rusty-orange glow, because of the red-orange color of the moon, it was called a Blood Moon.
May 15 entertained amateur stargazers and professionals alike. A full eclipse of the moon will not occur again until 2025.
Timeline of the Events
Moonrise in Cibola County began around 7:52 pm
The partial eclipse began around 8:27 pm
The total eclipse began at 9:29 pm
The maximum eclipse started at 10:11 pm
The total eclipse ended around 10:53 pm
The partial eclipse ended around 11:55 pm