The IWC Portugieser Perpetual Calendar Ref. IW503401 features a midnight blue dial, the double moon display. A new design element is the railway track style chapter ring that is inspired by the original Portugieser. The image of the actual Moon and the actual night sky with stars was taken on 28 July 2015 at around 10pm as viewed from Singapore. The Moon was in a waxing gibbous phase and was approaching its full moon phase which will take place on 31 July 2015. Image of IWC watch: © IWC. Photo of Moon: © TANG Portfolio. Elfa / Timmy. July 2015
Today, Friday 31 July 2015, is the “once in a blue moon” day for it is the second full moon of this calendar month.
A blue moon will take place tonight. Defined as the second full moon in a month, it is a rare event. The last blue moon took place on 31 August 2012 or almost three years ago.
If you were to miss tonight’s “Blue Moon” experience, then you’d have to wait till the next blue moon which will only happen more than two years later, on 31 January 2018.
As the Moon takes 29 days, 12 hours, 44 minutes and 3 seconds for each moon phase – the time required to orbit Earth, you can understand why it is really rare to have a blue moon as it would have to fall, or should we say appear, mostly in months with 31 days.
A full moon means that the Moon is reflecting the maximum sunlight (from the Sun). This allows us on Earth to better appreciate the view of our Moon – its terrain and craters for instance.
Wristwatches which have the moon phase display will indicate a complete, rounded moon on this day.
Interestingly, the IWC Portugieser Perpetual Calendar Ref. 503401 for example (seen above), will display two full moons on its dial. This is not because it is a “blue moon phase” display; rather, it is because this watch, with what is termed the “double moon”, displays the phase of moon for both the Northern and Southern hemispheres.
What’s more, this particular Portugieser Perpetual Calendar Ref. IW503401 is an apt watch to be on your wrist as you witness today’s full moon as it features not only the moon phase display but a midnight blue dial.
Now speaking of two moons on the dial, perhaps that may even be an idea for the good folks at IWC to create their signature perpetual calendar movement in a watch named the “blue moon” that can be launched during the next blue moon occurrence – in January 2018?