I know there's A LOT of other stuff happening in the world right now
But if you have a second - peek out of your window tonight and enjoy the biggest Supermoon of the year tonight
NASA will help explain:
A supermoon occurs when the moon’s orbit is closest (perigee) to Earth at the same time it is full. So what's so special about a supermoon? Turns out, it's a bit more subtle than it sounds—but for the interested observer, there's plenty to see and learn.
- The Moon orbits Earth in an ellipse, an oval that brings it closer to and farther from Earth as it goes around.
- The farthest point in this ellipse is called theapogeeand is about 253,000 miles (405,500 kilometers) from Earth on average.
- Its closest point is theperigee, which is an average distance of about 226,000 miles (363,300 kilometers) from Earth.
- When a full moon appears at perigee it is slightly brighter and larger than a regular full moon—and that's where we get a "supermoon.