STARGAZERS, keep your eyes peeled for a celestial treat as this year’s Strawberry Supermoon makes an appearance.
As long as the weather isn’t too cloudy, people across the world should see this Full Moon appear even more dazzling than usual.
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Experts say it could be up to 30 per cent brighter compared with other points in the lunar orbit.
And optical illusions will also make the Moon look so much bigger when it’s near the horizon too.
Peak illumination will actually happen at lunchtime on Tuesday, June 14 for Brits, according to the Royal Observatory Greenwich.
That’s because at exactly 12.51pm BST the Moon and the Sun will be on opposite sides of Earth.
But that doesn’t mean you won’t get to see it, the Moon will still look full tonight, as well as Wednesday.
When’s the best time to see the Strawberry Supermoon?
While it’ll be pretty visible during the day, the best time is obviously at night.
On Tuesday evening, the Moon will rise in the southeast at 10:02pm BST.
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Early on Wednesday, by about 00.23am BST, it’ll be at the closest point to Earth (known as the perigee) which is the ideal moment to look out.
Why’s it called a Strawberry Moon?
Although the Strawberry Supermoon may appear red, that’s not the reason why it got its name.
The title is actually to do with the time of year, when berries ripen.
It’s sometimes called Rose Moon, due to many of the flowers popping up around now.
There’s also Mead Moon and Honey Moon, in reference to the time when honey can be harvested.
What’s a Supermoon?
As for the Supermoon bit – this happens when the Moon is at its closest point to Earth on its elliptical (aka oval) orbit around Earth.
Pros call this the perigee.
When the perigee and a Full Moon happens at the same time, we get a Supermoon.
The Moon – our closest neighbour explained
Here’s what you need to know…
- The Moon is a natural satellite – a space-faring body that orbits a planet
- It’s Earth’s only natural satellite, and is the fifth biggest in the Solar System
- The Moon measures 2,158 miles across, roughly 0.27 times the diameter of Earth
- Temperatures on the Moon range from minus 173 degrees Celcius to 260 degrees Celcius
- Experts assumed the Moon was another planet, until Nicolaus Copernicus outlined his theory about our Solar System in 1543
- It was eventually assigned to a “class” after Galileo discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter in 1610
- The Moon is believed to have formed around 4.51billion years ago
- The strength of its gravitational field is about a sixth of Earth’s gravity
- Earth and the Moon have “synchronous rotation”, which means we always see the same side of the Moon – hence the phrase “dark side of the Moon”
- The Moon’s surface is actually dark, but appears bright in the sky due to its reflective ground
- During a solar eclipse, the Moon covers the Sun almost completely. Both objects appear a similar size in the sky because the Sun is both 400 times larger and farther
- The first spacecraft to reach the Moon was in 1959, as part of the Soviet Union’s Lunar program
- The first manned orbital mission was Nasa’s Apollo 8 in 1968
- And the first manned lunar landing was in 1969, as part of the Apollo 11 mission
