Did you check your yearly horoscope in the pages of our magazine last month? I hope you liked it. Do you like to watch Mercury, Venus, or Saturn in the sky and plan your days keeping their influences in mind? Most of us have spent at least a day or two daydreaming under the night sky while gazing at the sea of stars above. Every month, on the pages of our magazine, we attempt to bring you the stories of those splendid wonders of the universe.

This permanent feature of our magazine is courtesy of one of our ex-editors, Celestia Carrow.

Through this feature, I, Hiya, Editor-in-Chief of this magazine, will be taking you on a magical ride through the cosmos, helping your mind maraud the mystique of the most important celestial events of this month while also giving you a quick glance into those that are about to show up in the upcoming shortest month of the year.

January was the first month of 2024, with 31 brand new days. Wait, does that remind me of something? Oh yes, my dearest readers, we are already a month into another leap year (a year that has 366 days instead of 365 and comes every four revolutions of our Earth across the Sun), which means that February, the upcoming shortest month of the year, will not be so short after all. It will have 29 days instead of the usual 28. So if you had anything extra in mind that you keep forgetting to cross off your to-do list, this is your chance. Use the extra day in February to get it done and make the month extra special.

The most significant cosmic events in January 2024 included:

✧ On January 2, our beloved Earth reached its nearest point in orbit around the Sun, which is also known as the Perihelion. This marked "Perihelion Day" for us, earthlings. The Earth was at a distance of 91.4 million miles from the Sun on "Perihelion Day" and about 3 million miles closer to the Sun than on "Aphelion Day" (you guessed it, the day the Earth reaches its farthest point in orbit around the Sun).

→If you felt the heat rising as we neared January 2, that was because the sunlight is 7% more intense on "Perihelion Day" than on "Aphelion Day".

✧ On the night of January 3 and the morning of January 4, the skies were beautified by the Quadrantids meteor shower, an above-average shower with up to 40 meteors per hour at its peak. If you kept an eye on the constellation Bootes, you probably caught a view of some of the best ones radiating out of it, though most of the fainter ones were blocked out by the nearly Full Moon. I hope you enjoyed the spectacle. The Quadrantids meteor shower is an annual shower thought to be produced by dust grains left behind by an extinct comet known as 2003 EH1 discovered in 2003 that runs from January 1 to January 5, so you can only expect it again next year. 

✧ On January 10, Mars marched closer to the Moon, turning itself into a sight to behold. If you were hoping to see the Red Planet in all its glory, I hope you grabbed a few great chances for astrophotography, thanks to the stunning views of Mars.

→If you felt too much willpower surging through your veins while trying to cast charms or noticed enemy factions being extremely strong-willed and stubborn, Mars is to blame.

✧ January 11 was the New Moon night for nocturnal magical creatures, spell casting experimenters, and potion inventors to get frisky.

✧ On January 12, Mercury was at its greatest Eastern Elongation, bringing the best view of Mercury ever, low in the eastern sky just before sunrise.

→ If you felt those sudden spikes in imagination, bouts of inspiration, and flow of creativity in your veins, it was probably Mercury helping you all along.

✧ On January 14, Saturn built a close friendship with the Moon, moving closer to our natural satellite.

→Feeling particularly thoughtful and empathetic and putting effort into slowly and carefully considering your interactions could very well be Saturn's influence on you.

✧ On January 18, Jupiter brushed along the side of our Moon very, very closely. If you wanted to see the two together, this was a great opportunity.

→One month into the new year, we are no strangers to embracing inevitable changes, whether loud and boisterous or slow and steady. Therefore, I would safely assume that Jupiter's presence in the sky didn't throw you off your feet.

✧ January 25 was our Full Moon night that our werewolf readers were careful on. However, this Full Moon night was very, very special, owing to a legacy left behind by Muggle folklore. This Moon is known as the Wolf Moon among Muggles because, at this time of the year, hungry wolf packs prowled around their camps, howling into the night. However, there are also two other pleasant names associated with it. They are the Old Moon and the Moon after Yule.

✧ On January 27, Mercury and Mars were in planetary conjunction, appearing to huddle very close together. It was a very, very rare event worth checking out.

→That sounds like a bloody creative war to me. Jokes aside, that would lead to constructive interference by Mercury and Mars with each other, enhancing their magical effects on Earth. Those unexplainable imaginative urges, the sudden clarity, enhanced inspiration, and problem-solving insight were all gifts of Mercury, while any stubbornness and refusal to budge may have come from Mars. I hope the two planetary influences were balanced out well for you.

✧ Also on January 27, the Moon was close to Regulus, the brightest star in the constellation Leo.

A very happy upcoming shortest month of the year to all of us. And, ooh, I am sure we didn't forget. It is the month graced by the blessings of St. Valentine himself.

Important cosmic events in the month of February 2024 will include:

✧ Zealous stargazers, watch out for a very beautiful celestial sight on February 1. Spica, the brightest star in the constellation Virgo, will pair up with Jupiter and be in conjunction with the Moon.

→Astrophotographers, here's your chance.

✧ On February 2, Mercury will reach its aphelion, meaning it will be at its maximum distance from the Sun. Therefore, its effect will be greatly reduced.

→Don't be disappointed if you experience a fall in creativity at this point in the month.

✧ On February 4, Antares, a red supergiant star in the constellation Scorpius, will be clearly distinguishable in the night sky thanks to its bright reddish hue.

→Keep an eye on the sky.

✧ The Alpha Centaurids meteor shower, a minor annual meteor shower that is active from January 28 to February 21, will peak on February 8, staging its best show.

✧ February 9 will be the New Moon night for those who are enthusiastic to show increased animosity without fear.

✧ On February 10, Saturn will be in close proximity to the Moon.

→Empathy and thoughtfulness will be sky high under the moonlit canopy of stars.

✧ On February 15, Jupiter will be visible 3.2 degrees south of the Moon.

→Unstoppable forces will be at play, either stealthily or very noticeably.

✧ On February 22, Venus and Mars will be in planetary conjunction.

→They will ominously enhance each other's magical effects. It is therefore highly recommended to exercise caution with feelings that can lead to outbursts, as Venus heightens any emotions, whether love or anger, and Mars is the harbinger of battle and destruction.

✧ WARNING: That brings us to our usual word of caution. Dearest Werewolf Readers, you need to be careful on February 24.  Restock your Wolfsbane potion stores and stay safe.

While the Red Moon is attributed to a total lunar eclipse, let's now uncover the natural mystique of the Blue Moon. Most of us are aware that an event that happens "once in a blue moon" is one that occurs very, very rarely. Did you know where this popular idiom came from? The first recorded use of this phrase, or rather a similar one, was around the year 1528, when an anti-clerical pamphlet published by William Roy and Jeremy Barlowe used the expression "if they say the moon is blue, it must be true". The expression would mean a foolish or gullible person who believed almost anything that was said to them, no matter how impossible. However, the more popular version of the idiom that we use today did not appear until much later in the 19th century in the publication of Real Life in London by Pierce Egan, where it was used to denote the meaning we know today - "close to impossible" or "rarely".

Conclusively, it must be clear by now that all the meanings somehow lead to "infrequent" or "absurd".

The color 'blue' in psychology leads us to a whole array of different meanings, though. Blue induces feelings of calmness, relaxation, peace, orderliness, and tranquility. The color itself is "toned down" and not as loud as some of the brighter colors, like red or black. Therefore, it is often used in bedrooms to help people sleep. Wearing blue is seen as a sign of stability and reliability, just as wearing red is symbolic of boldness and passion. So, if you are looking for a job and want your seniors to see you as reliable and trustworthy, or if you are looking to make your sweetheart want a serious, long-term relationship with you, blue is the color to wear to that interview or date.

However, there is still more mystery associated with this beautiful color, which lends itself to the term "blue moon". The "blue moon" is an actual natural phenomenon. Though this calendrical meaning of the term has only been well known in the last 25 years, it continues to intrigue millions of astronomers and skywatchers. The second Full Moon in a month is known as a "blue moon". Doesn't that sound weird? (If it doesn't, re-read that sentence.) Usually, there is only one Full Moon in a month. But what's the fun in believing the routine and the normal? Let me cheer you up by saying that a second Full Moon is actually possible. After all, you don't want to be too disappointed when your crush says that he or she will date you when the Moon is blue. Because the Moon's phases are out of sync with our calendar and all the months except February are longer than the lunar cycle of 29½ days, a blue moon appears about seven times every 19 years. Yes, it is a real astronomical phenomenon, though a bit wobbly. It moves around a bit owing to the different lengths of each month. That being said, don't break any boundaries with your crush, or else you may end up pushing your date to the next blue moon (which is on May 31, 2026). Caution and tact are highly recommended, no matter the situation.

Myriad songs, especially love songs, use the term "blue moon" as a symbol of sadness and loneliness. In one such song, the poor crooner's Moon turns to gold when he gets his love at the end.

There have also been historical examples of the Moon actually turning blue. Did that cheer you up a bit more? Read on. When the Indonesian volcano Krakatoa exploded in 1883, its dust turned sunsets green and the Moon blue all around the world for the best part of two years. In 1927, the Indian monsoons were late arriving, and the extra-long dry season blew up enough dust for a blue Moon. And Moons in northeastern North America turned blue in 1951 when huge forest fires in western Canada threw smoke particles up into the sky.

Looks like "once in a blue moon" is not so rare after all.

That was my best attempt at uncovering the mystery of the blue moon. I hope you enjoyed it.

Thank you for sticking with us, valuable readers of the Hogwarts Monthly Magazine. Your presence is golden and precious to us, and without you, we'd be feeling blue.

With that, I have to bid adieu for this month. I will be back on this page next month with more celestial events and the usual short peek into the future. Stay tuned to "Cosmic Communiqués by Hiya" and keep reading the Hogwarts Monthly Magazine.

Sources: -foxweather

seasky

starlust

skyandtelescope

fullmoonology

Image Credits: -earthsky

- Hiya Debnath, Journalist, Editor-in-Chief, Compiler, Publisher, Hogwarts Monthly Magazine.