Super Blue Moon 2024: Incredible pictures from around the world

Stargazers have been in for a treat recently, as a rare blue Supermoon has been lighting up the night sky.

A Supermoon takes place when a full moon is closest to the Earth, appearing bigger and brighter than normal.

The reason this one is called blue is not because of its colour, but because it's the third full moon in this season which has four full moons in total.

The Supermoon could be seen in the sky last night, and it will still be visible for a couple more nights.

The incredible sight has been spotted around the world. Take a look at some of the best pics below!

This fisherman in the Azores caught sight of the supermoon as it rose above the islands.

There are in fact two definitions of a blue moon.

The first is a very rare event, which sees two full moons take place in one month and usually only happens every few years.

It takes a year for the Earth to orbit the Sun once and the Moon takes 29.5 days to complete one cycle around the Earth.

This means that 12 full cycles of the Moon around the Earth takes 354 days. That's less than the 365 days (or 366 days during a leap year) in our calendar year.

As the time frames don't quite match up, every two to three years we end up getting a 13th full moon, with two full months seen in a single month.

But this blue moon is so-called because it is the third of four full moons appearing this season.

This is because seasons typically only have three full moons instead of four.

A Supermoon is when a full Moon is closest to the Earth, appearing bigger and brighter than normal - up to 15% brighter and 30% bigger than regular full Moons.

Here you can see the huge moon rising over the historical Galata Tower in the city of Istanbul in Turkey.

This month's Supermoon is the first of four Supermoons we'll see this year.

The full moons of September, October and November will also be Supermoons.

Astronomers use a more technical name for a Supermoon - they call it a perigee syzygy Moon!

Can you spot it in this picture with the Eiffel Tower in Paris?

These Supermoon-gazers saw the sight from Duhok, Iraq

In some places - like here in the Netherlands - the supermoon turned red due to smoke from wildfires in North America.

Smoke particles mean that light passing through the atmosphere is scattered in such a way that the orange and red colours of the spectrum are more visible than usual.

Baseball fans at the Chicago White Sox v San Francisco Giants game were treated to the sight of the Supermoon rising over the field at Oracle Park on the west coast of America.

Did you know, every full moon of the year has its own name?

The full moon in August is sometimes referred to as the Sturgeon Moon or Harvest Moon.

August's Supermoon will be visible until Wednesday night.

In order to see it, you will need a clear night with little cloud coverage, away from buildings and street lights to give you the best view possible.

And although you do not need any special equipment to enjoy the night sky, a pair of binoculars will help you get an even better view.

The Supermoon was visible in many parts of the world, including here in China