Tuesday’s full moon will be a SUPER full moon

Tonight there will be a full moon. But not just ANY full moon, a SUPER full moon. Whoooaaa!

Whilst Koh Pha Ngan’s monthly full moon party has been shelved for the meantime, we can still appreciate this monthly phenomenon (well, not quite monthly). The The National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand says that the April astronomical phenomenon coincides with the perigee – the point in the orbit of the Moon which is nearest to the earth – so that the full moon will appear larger-than-usual. But we’re only talking a few percent bigger and brighter.

This fluctuation in the full moon’s distance from Earth is caused by the fact that the moon’s orbit around the Earth isn’t perfectly circular but very slightly elliptical. If the full moon occurs closer to the perigee (the closest point to Earth on this slightly elliptical orbit), it can appear bigger than if it occurs closer to the apogee (the farthest point).

If you’re a flat-earther you’ll have to come up with your own explanation.

The NARIT says tonight’s the moon will rise in the east from 7pm (of course the Moon always rises in the east). Of course the clouds from the early arrival of the wet season in parts of Thailand will either make the viewing impossible or perhaps more spectacular.

The NARIT has a few tips to get a great photo of tonight’s phenomenon… Use telephoto lens with focal length over 300mm and set your camera’s ISO at 400 or over.

And if you miss this supermoon, we’ll do it all again next month on May 26. This one will be even closer to the Earth and therefore slightly bigger, although the difference will still probably be impossible to spot.

For more information, visit HERE.