How to spot the 2 supermoons appearing in August
The Moon, or supermoon, is seen as it rises behind the U.S. Capitol, Monday, March 9, 2020, in Washington, D.C. A supermoon occurs when the Moon’s orbit is closest (perigee) to Earth. (NASA photo by Joel Kowsky)
(THE AMERICAN TRIBUNE) – Interesting in the mysteries of space? Well, there’s a galactic double feature far, far better than Barbenheimer out this August: two supermoons that won’t be seen again until January of 2037, so now’s the time to break out the binoculars or telescope and aim at the moon.
The first, visible from August 1st through August 3rd, is a “sturgeon supermoon.” It rose on August 1 and it will set on August 3. The second, visible on August 30th, is a rare, super blue moon. The moon at both of those dates is called a “supermoon” because this is the time of month that the moon reaches its “pedigree,” or closest point to Earth in its elliptical orbit around our planet.
In-the-Sky, noting why that pedigree is interesting to skywatchers, notes, “Although the angular size of the Moon only changes by a very modest amount in reality, a very common optical illusion is that the Moon appears very much larger than it really is when it is close to the horizon. This is called the Moon illusion – and is nothing more than an optical illusion. Any photograph will reveal that the Moon is exactly the same size regardless of whether it appears on the horizon or directly overhead. The reason why we perceive this optical illusion is hotly debated. However, it may explain why some people are convinced that the Moon appears larger on some nights than others, despite the actual changes in its true size being so small.”
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