Supermoon: Biggest in living memory to appear in the sky, as 2016 ends with three huge full moons in a row
The moon will be closer to Earth than it has been since 1948, and it won’t get as close again until 2034
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The year is set to close with the biggest moon that most people alive will ever have seen.
The satellite is set to get closer – and therefore appear brighter and bigger – than it has for almost 70 years on 14 November.
A supermoon happens because of the strange, egg-shaped orbit of the moon. One part of the orbit known as the perigee, is about 30,000 miles closer to earth than the apogee, or the furthest part.
And if the orbit of the moon lines up right with the sun and the Earth, it causes an effect called perigee-syzygy – meaning that the moon appears far bigger in the sky and gets called a supermoon.
Supermoons happen relatively often. But it’s very rare that they’re quite as big as the one coming this month.
The moon won't come this close again until 2034. And the last time it was so near to earth was nearly 70 years ago, in 1948.
Actually spotting the difference in the moon's apparent size is another thing, and mostly depends on the “moon illusion”. When the moon is low-hanging, near the horizon, it can look extra big because of the trees or buildings in front of it – which is more of an optical illusion than a reflection of how big it really looks from Earth.
November 14 will bring the second of three supermoon events that are closing out 2016, with the sight being visible when the moon is full in December too, as it was in October.
Just as November’s full moon is notable for being so historically large, the December moon has its own distinguishing feature too, though it won’t be quite as spectacular. The December moon will block out the view of the Geminid meteor shower, meaning that almost all of the usual sight will be invisible because the moon will be so bright.
The December moon will fall on 14 December. The October supermoon arrived on the 16th.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments