Tonight’s Supermoon promises to be the biggest and brightest Full Moon of the year. The Supermoon will appear under the guise of the April Pink Moon, which is also known as the Grass Moon and Egg Moon. Find out how to watch the Supermoon from the comfort of your home tonight.
What is the Supermoon? Why is the Full Moon a Supermoon tonight?
The Moon races around our planet on an orbit that is elliptic and not perfectly round.
As a result, the Moon is closer or farther from us every single night.
If a Full Moon happens to fall within 90 percent of the Moon’s lowest orbital point, the lunar perigee, we witness a Supermoon.
If a Full Moon falls within 90 percent of its highest orbital point, the lunar apogee, we witness a Micromoon.
Astronomers estimate some Supermoons can be up to 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter than normal.
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How to watch the Pink Supermoon live online tonight:
Courtesy of the Virtual Telescope Project in Italy, you can watch the Supermoon from home in the embedded video player above.
Astrophysicist Gianluca Masi told Express.co.uk the live stream will kick-off later tonight from Rome (April 7).
You can tune in to the free broadcast from 6.30pm BST (5.30pm UTC) without breaking the rules of the coronavirus lockdown.
The live stream will follow the Supermoon as it flies over the historic skyline of Italy’s capital.
Dr Masi said: “Looking up at the skies while all around the planet we are battling COVID-19, is a precious source of beauty and strength, ideally connecting all of us with the cosmos where we live.
It will be the largest and brightest Full Moon of the year
Dr Gianluca Masi, Virtual Telescope Project
“You are invited to safely join our free, live webcast from the comfort of your home: you just need a computer/tablet/smartphone and an internet connection.
“We will admire our satellite rising above the skyline of Rome, the Eternal City, enjoying the largest Full Moon of the year.
“All this while we celebrate in April the 2020 Global Astronomy Month, the world’s largest global celebration of astronomy: this event is part of the international happening.”
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Although Supermoons can appear bigger and brighter, untrained astronomy enthusiasts might struggle to see a difference.
According to Dr Masi, there are no obvious variations that make the Moon stand out against the night sky.
But if you look at the comparison chart above, you will see just how much bigger a Supermoon is compared to a regular Full Moon.
Tonight, the Moon will be about 221,000 miles (357,000km) from our planet.
Dr Masi said: “It will be the largest and brightest Full Moon of the year.”
How many Full Moons are there this year?
Astronomers are looking forward to 12 Full Moons in 2020, which includes an extra Blue Moon in October.
In popular astronomy, a Blue Moon is one of two Full Moons to appear in the same calendar month.
Here is a list of the Full Moons, their names and their dates:
January 10 – Wolf Moon
February 9 – Snow Moon
March 9 – Worm Moon
Pink Moon – April 8
May 7 – Flower Moon
June 6 – Strawberry Moon
July 5 – Buck Moon
August 3 – Sturgeon Moon
September 2 – Full Corn Moon
October 1 – Hunter’s Moon
October 31 – Hunter’s Moon
November 30 – Beaver Moon
December 30 – Cold Moon
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