Full Moons mark the midway point of the lunar calendar when the Moon finds itself directly across from the Sun. On rare occasions, Full Moons will coincide with the Moon reaching its lunar perigee or lowest orbit.
When a Moon reaches perigee, it may appear bigger and brighter at night than unusual.
Although astronomers prefer the term Full Moon at perigee or perigee Moon, amateur astronomers refer to the phenomenon as a Supermoon.
The opposite of a Supermoon, a Micromoon, occurs when a Full Moon is at apogee or its highest orbit.
A Supermoon will grace the skies on the weekend of February 8 to February 9.
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When is the Supermoon over the UK?
The Supermoon will peak this weekend although the Full Moon and lunar perigee are not perfectly aligned.
The Moon will be closest to Earth on Monday, February 10.
But the Full Moon will peak one day earlier here in the UK, early on Sunday morning.
Astronomers predict the Full Moon will peak around 7.33am GMT.
The bad news is, however, the Moon will only be visible for about 20 minutes before it disappears.
How to see the Supermoon over the UK this weekend
When the Snow Moon peaks on Sunday, you will only have a 20-minute window of opportunity to see it in person.
The Supermoon offers us a great opportunity to look up and discover the sky
Dr Gianluca Masi, Virtual Telescope Project
On Sunday morning, the Full Moon will set in the west-northwest skies around 7.55am GMT.
You will then have to wait until 5.15pm GMT for the Moon to rise in the east-northeast skies.
But the good news is Full Moons appear full for three days centred around the peak.
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How to watch the Supermoon live online
If you would rather stay indoors on Sunday morning, you will have a chance to catch an online broadcast of the Supermoon.
Dr Gianluca Masi, head of the Virtual Telescope Project in Italy, told Express.co.uk his telescope will follow the Supermoon over the picturesque skyline of Rome.
The astrophysicist said: “The Supermoon offers us a great opportunity to look up and discover the sky.”
The livestream will kick off at 4pm GMT on Saturday, February 8.
You can watch the stream on the Virtual Telescope’s website or here on Express.co.uk tomorrow.
Dr Masi said: “At night, the Full Moon is very bright, almost dazzling, compared to the darkness of the landscape.
“At its rise, the Moon appears behind the monuments and elements of the landscape, generating the feeling that its disk is larger than usual but this is just an optical illusion, due to the presence of these terrestrial elements on the line of sight, giving grounds for comparison.
“Seeing the Full Moon, especially when ‘super’ rising above Rome is a unique emotion: our satellite hangs above the legendary skyline of the Eternal City, with its glorious monuments, adding their magic to the experience.”
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