Don’t miss your chance to see a blue supermoon from Georgia. Here’s when to look up
The moon will be at its brightest Monday as the first in four consecutive supermoons crosses the Georgia sky.
A supermoon is when a full moon comes its closest to Earth, which can make the moon will appear up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than it normally appears, according to NASA.
“During every 27-day orbit around Earth, the Moon reaches both its perigee, about 226,000 miles from Earth, and its farthest point, or apogee, about 251,000 miles from Earth,” according to NASA.
The close proximity of supermoons can cause higher tides.
Supermoons occur only a few times a year and usually occur consecutively.
Monday’s moon will be farther away than the next four supermoons, which will appear during the next four orbits. The closest supermoon will be Oct.17’s harvest moon.
This year’s supermoons
- Aug. 19: 224,917 miles (361,969 kilometers)
- Sep 18: 222,131 miles (357,485 kilometers)
- Oct 17: 222,055 miles (357,363 kilometers)
- Nov 15: 224,853 miles (361,866 kilometers)
Monday’s moon, which will appear at 2:26 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, will also be a blue moon. The name does not refer to the color, but to the number of moons in a month or season. The moon will appear full for three days.The moon will be at its brightest Monday as the first in four consecutive supermoons crosses the sky.
A supermoon is when a full moon comes its closest to Earth, which can make the moon will appear up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than it normally appears, according to NASA.
“During every 27-day orbit around Earth, the Moon reaches both its perigee, about 226,000 miles from Earth, and its farthest point, or apogee, about 251,000 miles from Earth,” according to NASA.
The close proximity of supermoons can cause higher tides.
Supermoons occur only a few times a year and usually occur consecutively.
Monday’s moon will be farther away than the next four supermoons, which will appear during the next four orbits. The closest supermoon will be Oct.17’s harvest moon.
This year’s supermoons
- Aug. 19: 224,917 miles (361,969 kilometers)
- Sep 18: 222,131 miles (357,485 kilometers)
- Oct 17: 222,055 miles (357,363 kilometers)
- Nov 15: 224,853 miles (361,866 kilometers)
Monday’s moon, which will appear at 2:26 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, will also be a blue moon. The name does not refer to the color, but to the number of moons in a month or season. The moon will appear full for three days.
This story was originally published August 16, 2024 at 4:37 PM with the headline "Don’t miss your chance to see a blue supermoon from Georgia. Here’s when to look up."
