Photographer Captures 1st Full Moon of August

The first of two full moons in August rises over Paris, France in this night sky photo. Astrophotographer VegaStar Carpentier took this photo Aug. 1, 2012 from Paris, France using a Canon EOS 1000D. CREDIT: VegaStar Carpentier View full size image

It was a marvelous night for a full moon as seen in this stunning skywatching image.

This photo was taken by VegaStar Carpentier in the early evening of Aug. 1, 2012 from Paris, France using a Canon EOS 1000D. 

August will have two full moons  this year. The second full moon will take place on Aug. 31, called a blue moon.  Extra days in a solar year accumulate faster than that of a lunar cycle making an extra full moon every two to three years. It takes a "synodic" month or 29.53 days between one full moon to the next. The full moon occurs when it can fully reflect the light of the sun giving it a beautiful glow.

Editor's note: If you have an amazing skywatching photo you'd like to share for a possible story or image gallery, please contact managing editor Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com.

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