It’s a rare sight…
The moon rose this evening at 5pm and you may have noticed something peculiar about the whole thing… it appears bigger than usual.
You would be correct in your suspicions as it’s known as a Supermoon. It means that the moon will be appearing 14% bigger and 30% brighter than usual.
The event is as a result of the moon coming closer to Earth than it has at any point in the last 69 years.
Around 12pm Irish time on Monday, the gap between the Earth and Moon was at it narrowest at 221,525 miles (356,510 km) but it remains close for the rest of the evening, giving you ample time to see this spectacle.
It will also be appearing almost identically as large on Tuesday but it won’t make a similar approach again after that until November 25, 2034.
Light pollution shouldn’t make a overwhelming difference to your view but for the best results, it’s probably better to get out of the city/town to watch it.
As long as the skies are clear, you should have a good view of the moon tonight, but it’s not looking good for some people around Ireland as BBC forecaster Barra Best has said there’s a lot cloud cover promised.
away from light pollution. However, unfortunately we've an awful lot of cloud. Don't worry, you can see it again in 2034 😜
— Barra Best (@barrabest) November 14, 2016
Monday’s event is the biggest and best in a series of three supermoons. The first event was on October 16, and the third is expected in December.
If you miss tonight’s one, don’t worry, you only have 18 more years to wait to see it again…
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