When is moon closest to earth 2017

Meanwhile, enjoy the supermoon in all its majesty with our gallery of photos from around the world. Toronto-based photographer Dominic Bugatto captured this shot of the supermoon competing with the more mundane artificial light of a convenience store. The supermoon caught on the rise above the ridges of the Algarve Serra in Portugal by photographer Craig Rogers. The supermoon was the only thing that could make an evening on the Spanish isle of Mallorca more elegant in this photo by Fernando Vega.

There was an addition to the neighborhood in this photo of the massive-looking moon taken by Charlotte-based Mark Lowe. Seattle is known for cloudy skies, but in the case of the supermoon, some wispy ones only added to the effect. Thank Martin Criminale for the photo. This supermoon shot from Poland comes via " nightscapes" specialist Piotr Potepa. David Yu grabbed a particularly huge-looking supermoon behind the San Francisco skyline in this photo take from Alameda island across the bay.

A bucolic setting for the supermoon rising in this photo from Pennsylvania by Mike Vosburg. This photo from UK photographer Lukias Saikul provides a closer look at the moon on its closest approach of the year. It can also be referred to as a perigee syzygy Full Moon. Supermoons are extraordinarily quite ordinary and Supermoons are not rare. Any rising Full Moon close to the horizon will look large and impressive.

There is not any scientific evidence that Supermoons cause Earthquakes or volcanoes. A Super Moon will not fill the sky. When a Supermoon is high in the sky it is difficult to tell the difference between a Supermoon or a normal Full Moon. Perigee-Syzygy of Earth-Moon-Sun system: to Solar eclipse.

Solar Eclipse. Super Moons to Dates, Time, and Distance. The Moon is moving away from Earth at 1. Site Map - index. About us. Transit of Venus Moon Phases They do however appear to be bright, but again a lot has to do with the atmosphere and clarity of the sky It can be impressive when the Moon is viewed close to the horizon, and it is very much worthwhile going outside to take a look, However, once the Moon is high in the sky at its highest zenith , and free of any Earth buildings, trees, hills or mountains; there is no reference to gauge it against and its apparent size will look little different to a normal Full Moon.

Photo credit; Andrea. And: How much brighter is a Supermoon compared to a normal Full Moon? Why do we call it a Supermoon? Exaggerated and Hyperbole Claims about a Supermoon When supermoons are in the news, you might hear from some sources exaggerated statistics about the size and brightness of a Supermoon, however, although we encourage you to look at the Moon, eclipses, and other astronomical phenomena as and when they occur, a Supermoon high in the sky, looks pretty much like any other Full Moon.

Natural disasters connections or not and Supermoons There is no concrete evidence of interrelationships between Supermoons and major Earthquakes or tsunamis.

A Supermoon and a Full Moon at apogee; side by side comparison. Supermoon compared to Full Moon at apogee. The Moon orbits Earth in an elliptical path; average distance is approximately: ,00 miles , km. Qestions on a Super Moon answered here:. At its peak, if you have a very clear sky and are far away from city lights, you should be able to see about meteors per hour, and unlike last year, most of the night will be free from interference from moonlight.

The annual Ursid meteor shower is not expected to produce many visible meteors this year about 10 per hour. The good news is that the waxing crescent Moon will not interfere, as it will set by around 9 PM.

The annual Quadrantid meteor shower is another usually strong meteor shower, active from December 28, to January 12, , but peaks two days after the full Moon after next at the start of January , so moonlight will interfere with observing these meteors. Even though they are not visible usually, I include in these Moon missives information about Near Earth Objects mostly asteroids that pass the Earth within about 10 lunar distances, because I find it interesting that we have discovered so many.

Saturday evening into Sunday morning, December 2 to 3, , the bright star Aldebaran will appear near the full Moon. Because this full Moon is near perigee, it qualifies as the first of three supermoons. On Friday morning, December 8, , the bright star to the left of the waning gibbous Moon will be Regulus. The Moon will appear to move away from Regulus Friday night into Saturday morning. Tuesday evening, December 12, , will be when the planet Mercury will pass between the Earth and the Sun, called inferior conjunction.

Wednesday morning, December 13, , the planet Mars and the bright star Spica will appear to form a triangle with the waning crescent Moon, with Spica on the right and Mars below the Moon. The bright planet below the triangle will be Jupiter. This triangle will be visible until lost in the glow of morning twilight, which will begin at AM.

The annual Geminid meteor shower is expected to peak late Wednesday night, December 13, into the morning on Thursday, December 14, At the peak, if you have a very clear sky and are far away from city lights, you should be able to see about meteors per hour, and unlike last year, most of the night will be free from interference by moonlight.

The best time to look will be after midnight but before the sky starts to lighten, first from moonrise although the thin crescent Moon will not interfere too much, and will be putting on a show with Mars and Jupiter as noted below , then with dawn. Thursday morning, December 14, , the planets Mars and Jupiter will appear to form a triangle with the waning crescent Moon, with Mars to the upper right and Jupiter to the lower right.

The bright star to the upper right of Mars will be Spica. If you are out to see this triangle, also watch for meteors as noted in the entry above. The day of the new Moon marks the start of the eleventh month of the Chinese calendar and the next day marks the start of Teveth in the Hebrew calendar. Tuesday evening, December 19, , is the estimated beginning of Rabi' al-Thani, the fourth month of the Islamic year. This is the day with the shortest period of sunlight for the year although it is actually one of the longest solar days of the year.

Thursday afternoon, December 21, , will be when the planet Saturn passes on the far side of the Sun as seen from Earth, called conjunction. For the Washington, DC area, at least and similar latitudes , Friday morning, December 29, , will be when the planet Mercury appears at its highest in the southeast at the time morning twilight begins.