Watch Supermoon tomorrow when moon kisses Earth

New Delhi, June 22: Tonight will be a teaser and tomorrow night the sight will be bright and big. A super to be seen on Sunday will be 12 per cent bigger and 30 per cent brighter compared to the normal full moon.

Tomorrow's moon is scientifically called as the perigee moon, when the moon is nearest to the earth.
The best time to watch it is when it is close to the horizon or on Monday morning when it sets in the west. Oterwise one can watch the super moon by looking towards east on Sunday when the moon rises at 6:40 pm.

The distance between the earth and moon varies from 3,56,400 km to 4,06,700 km during the moon's oval shaped orbit. The average distance between the two is 3,84,800 km.

"It doesn't matter where you are, the full moon you're seeing will be the biggest for 2013," Michelle Thaller, the assistant director of science at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center said. "... That 12 percent size difference can mean as much as a 30 percent change in the brightness, so this will be a particularly bright supermoon."

The last time a super moon occurred was on May 6, 2012, which was 36 km closer than what will be experienced on Sunday when the moon comes to a distance of 3,56,989 km. It is also observed that the super moon occurs in a duration of one year, one month and 18 days and hence the next super moon will be on August 10, 2014. Moon will be farthest from earth this year on July 7, at 4,06,491 km.

The sun is responsibe for the difference in distance. In the winter, when the Earth is closest to the sun, a supermoon could be even closer and more stunning. The strength of the sun's gravity pulls both the moon and the Earth towards it slightly, making the moon dip closer to the planet.

The word supermoon was coined in 1979 by astrologer Richard Nolle. He used the term to describe a new or full moon that occurs when the moon is at or near its closest approach to Earth.

Meanwhile, according to the Planetary Society of India, planet Saturn is visible in the evening skies rising at east after sunset. Visible since April 28, the Saturn can be spotted as a non-twinkling bright object. Planet Venus is visible in the evening skies immediately after sunset for the last one month or more in the east direction.

OneIndia News