These are my preferate pictures of the biggest full Moon in almost 70 years take from around the world on Novemver 14, 2016.
Today’s full Moon is the biggest and brightest in almost 70 years. The last time we had such a close full Moon was January 26, 1948 and it won’t happen again until November 25, 2034.
Full moons vary in size because the Moon’s orbit is not a circle, it’s an ellipse. One side of the Moon’s orbit, called “perigee,” is 50,000 km closer to Earth than the other side, “apogee.”
This Monday’s “supermoon” becomes full about 2 hours away from perigee, a coincidence that makes it as much as 14% bigger and 30% brighter than lesser moons we have seen in the past.
But will we be able to tell the difference just by looking?
A 30% difference in brightness can easily be masked by clouds or the glare of urban lights. Also, there are no rulers floating in the sky to measure lunar diameters.
Hanging high overhead with no reference points to provide a sense of scale, one full Moon looks much like any other.
To get the most out of Monday’s Supermoon, try to catch the celestial body just as it is rising or setting. This will activate the Moon Illusion and make the perigee Moon of Nov. 14th look super… Indeed.