
A supermoon is slightly larger and brighter than a normal full moon. This phenomenon occurs when the Moon’s perigee, or the point in the orbit, of the moon is closest to the Earth.
Occasionally, this coincides with a full Moon and at that point, it is known as a Supermoon.
What is a supermoon?
According to Space.com, eclipse expert and former Nasa astrophysicist, Fred Espanak, said that there will be four supermoons in 2024 which are expected to happen in August, September, October, and November.
Espanak defines a supermoon as a full moon within 90% of its nearest approach to Earth. Based on his claims, the supermoon of 2024 is scheduled to happen on October 17 at 7:26 am ET which would be 4:56 pm in IST.
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Supermoons are a common phenomenon and one can expect three to four supermoons each year. However, the word supermoon came into practice only in the last four decades, it got attention in 2016 after three supermoons occurred in a row.
When is the next supermoon in 2024?
According to a report, the next supermoon will take place on August 19 at 2.26 pm ET which is 11:56 pm in India. This is the first supermoon of the year.
Interestingly, the previous supermoon was a rare occurrence as it was mixed with a blue moon and took place on the full moon of August 30, 2023.
What causes a supermoon?
The Moon’s orbit around the Earth is not a perfect circle, around 3,82,900 kilometres (km) away. Its apogee and perigee vary every month due to gravitational forces from the Earth, Sun, and other planets.
NASA’s Noah Petro in an interview with Space.com confirmed that these forces caused the moon’s orbit to be irregular. For a supermoon, the moon is required to be at its nearest point in its 27-day orbit and fully illuminated by the Sun and this happens every 29.5 days.
This alignment is rare and occurs only a few times a year, because the Moon’s orbit changes orientation as Earth orbits the Sun, averting monthly supermoons.
During supermoons, the moon unfolds around 30% brighter and 14% larger than its normal size, while experts claim that it is difficult to notice the difference with the naked eye.