STORY BY KAREN BOSSICK

PHOTO BY ALI LONG

Ketchum resident Ali Long took this picture of the New Year’s moon with a star-like cross while braving the chill on a cold start to the New Year’s in Stanley.

“Leave it to Venus and Mars to photo bomb the moon!” she said.

Astronomers say starwatchers are in for a bonus in 2023 as they’ll get 13 full moons, with August having two full moons.

That makes the second full moon in August a blue moon, and those typically occur only every two to three years.

Look also for four supermoons in 2023. They look bigger and are 30 percent brighter than ordinary full moons because their orbits are closer to the Earth—a mere 223,000 miles from Earth.

The celestial fun kicks off on Jan. 6, when we’ll see a wolf moon, so called because wolves are often active during the early parts of the year. Other names given the first full moon of the year include the Moon after Yule, Stay Home Moon and Quiet Moon.

If you’re into snowshoeing under a full moon, you can also pencil in full moons on Feb. 5 and March 7.