Photo of the super blue moon, taken by Sam Keckeisen from Heinenhill St. in New Ulm, Wednesday night.

NEW ULM — The world was treated to a rare astronomical treat Wednesday night.

For the first time since 2018, a super blue moon was visible in the evening sky. A supermoon blue moon is a combination of two rare events, the blue moon and the supermoon.

A blue moon occurs when a second full moon appears in a single month. August began with a full moon on the first of the month. The second full moon arrived on August 30. Only 3% of full moons are blue moons.

A supermoon refers to the time when the moon is full, but also at its closest orbit to Earth resulting in a slightly larger and brighter appearance. According to NASA, the moon’s size in the night sky appears to have increased 14%. As a result, a supermoon is brighter than a typical moon.

New Ulm photographer Sam Keckeisen managed to capture this image of the super blue moon Wednesday night. Keckeisen said he took the photo standing in his front yard on Heinenhill St. He said the trick to getting a clear photograph of the moon is to be patient and wait for the right time.

“You need that black sky,” Keckeisen said. Without the dark backdrop, ambient light from the moon can create a grainy image.

For the photo, Keckeisen used a Cannon 6D Mark 2 camera with a Sigma 150-600mm lens. With this lens, he was able to zoom in enough to get beyond the ambient light from the city.

Keckeisen has some experience photographing the moon. Last fall, he captured a photo of the moon when it appeared deep orange.

The super blue moon was at its peak at 8:36 p.m. Central Daylight Time, Wednesday and will appear full through Thursday evening.

Typically a super blue moon occurs at least once a decade, but Earth will need to wait another 14 years to see another. The next super blue moon will occur in 2037. The next blue moon will occur sooner in May 2026.