AP – October’s supermoon is the closest of the year and it’s teaming up with a comet for a rare stargazing two-for-one.
The third of four supermoons this year, it was 357,364 kilometres (km) away last night, making it seem even bigger and brighter than in August and September. It will reach its full lunar phase today.
In a twist of cosmic fate, a comet is in the neighbourhood. Discovered last year, comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas is now prominent in the Northern Hemisphere after wowing stargazers in the Southern Hemisphere. The moonlight will wash out some of the comet’s tail, but it’s still worth a look after sunset, said National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Bill Cooke.
“Most astronomers hate the full moon because its bright light messes up observing other objects. So it’s a bit hard for us to wax poetic about it even if it’s the biggest supermoon of 2024,” he said in an email.
Better catch the comet; it may never return. But don’t fret if you miss today’s supermoon. The final supermoon of the year will rise on November 15.
WHAT MAKES A MOON SO SUPER?
More a popular term than a scientific one, a supermoon occurs when a full lunar phase syncs up with an especially close swing around the Earth.
This usually happens only about three or four times a year and consecutively, given the moon’s constantly shifting, oval-shaped orbit.
A supermoon obviously isn’t bigger, but it can appear that way, although scientists said the difference can be barely perceptible.
