September 30 Black Moon Is Second of Two September New Moons

Summary: The September 30 black moon is the second of two September new moons in some parts of the world or the first of two October new moons in other parts.

apparent disk of Sept. 30 black moon: sub-earth -3.0 degrees latitude, 3.2 degrees longitude; sub-solar 0.7 degrees latitude, 183.2 degrees longitude; apparent equatorial diameter 29 arcminutes 44.8' arcseconds: mosaic map courtesy of USGS Astrogeology Science Center/U.S. Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department, Public Domain, via US Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department

The September 30 black moon earns its descriptor as the second of two September new moons for some parts of Earth in 2016.

The Sept. 30 black moon happens at 0:11 Coordinated Universal Time. In the continental United States, the black moon occurs in the early evening. The new moon phase takes place at 5:11 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, 6:11 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time, 7:11 p.m. Central Daylight Time and 8:11 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

Outside of the Lower 48, the Alaska Time Zone welcomes the Sept. 30 black moon at 4:11 p.m. In the Atlantic Time Zone, with no observance of daylight savings time, Puerto Ricans and U.S. Virgin Islanders see a black moon at 8:11 p.m.

The Sept. 30 black moon rises over Canada’s west coast metropolis of Vancouver, British Columbia, at 5:11 p.m. September’s second new moon rises over St. John’s, Newfoundland, on the Canadian east coast at 9:41 p.m.

The nearby French Overseas Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon (Collectivité d’Outre-mer de Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon) enjoys the Sept. 30 black moon at 10:11 p.m. The archipelago is located near the southwestern coast of Newfoundland.

The moon turns new Friday, Sept. 30, at 2:11 p.m. for Hawaii and the western Aleutian islands. The Sept. 30 moon, however, does not qualify as a black moon for these Central and North Pacific Ocean island archipelagos. The Hawaii-Aleutian Time Zone experienced a black moon in August. The month’s first new moon took place Tuesday, Aug. 2, at 10:44 a.m. A second new moon occurring Wednesday, Aug. 31, at 11:03 p.m. claimed the title of black moon.

For places in the Eastern Hemisphere where the moon’s new phase occurs Saturday, Oct. 1, the new moon’s next appearance, Monday, Oct. 31, qualifies as a black moon. September is not a black moon month for these locations.

Black moon is a popular term with no single accepted definition. As the second new moon in a calendar month, a black moon occurs once every 2.5 years.

Another definition confers a seasonal context upon a black moon. Each of the year’s four seasons usually claims three new moons. The third new moon within a season of four new moons is known as a black moon.

A black moon may also refer to a month with no new moon. The absence of a new moon only occurs in the year’s shortest month, February. February’s lack is January’s and March’s gain, for both months then have two new moons.

A fourth definition applies to a calendar month with no full moon. Every 19 years or so, February misses out on a full moon. Once again, January and March profit by then featuring two full months apiece.

Three of the four types of black moon have upcoming appearances. A black moon as the third in a season of four new moons takes place Monday, Aug. 21, 2017. A black moon as a calendar month with no full moon occurs in February 2018. As the second new moon within the same calendar month, a black moon happens Wednesday, July 31, 2019.

The takeaway for the Sept. 30 black moon is that four different lunar events fall within the popular term of black moon. The Sept. 30 black moon pertains to a calendar month featuring two new moons and describes the month’s second new moon.

New moon is first of eight phases in the lunar cycle; phases of the moon, as viewed southward from Northern Hemisphere: Orion 8, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

apparent disk of September’s black moon 2016; sub-earth -3.0 degrees latitude, 3.2 degrees longitude; sub-solar 0.7 degrees latitude, 183.2 degrees longitude; apparent equatorial diameter 29 arcminutes 44.8 arcseconds: mosaic map courtesy of USGS Astrogeology Science Center/US Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department, Public Domain, via US Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department @ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/diskmap.php

lunar phase cycle: Orion 8, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moon_phases_en.jpg

For further information:

“Apparent Disk of Solar System Object.” US Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department > Data Services.
Available @ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/diskmap.php

McClure, Bruce. “Black Moon on September 30?” EarthSky > Tonight. Sept. 30, 2016.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/tonight/black-moon-on-september-30

“What Is a Black Moon?” Time And Date > Sun & Moon > Moon.
Available @ https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/moon/black-moon.html