Kygazer in the UK will be treated with a “supermoon” on Wednesday night because Earth’s natural satellite appears bigger and brighter.
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The full moon in April is also known as the “flower month” because it appears when the flowers are in bloom.
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The celestial event is expected to become visible at dawn on May 26, when the moon is at its closest, although full illumination won’t come until late afternoon.
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According to Patricia Skelton, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the best time to see a supermoon in the UK is on the morning of May 26 or so on the evening of the same day – after sunset.
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He told the PA news agency, “A supermoon occurs when the full moon occurs at or near the time the moon reaches its closest point to earth – a point called perigee.
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“Perigee happened on May 26 at 2.51 a.m., full moon at 12:14 p.m. the same day.
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“The supermoon will rise in the east about half an hour after sunset and be visible all night.”
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During this time, Earth’s natural satellites will appear 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter.
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Miss Skelton said, “For the best supermoon view, wait until the moon rises higher in the sky.”
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The event also coincided with a lunar eclipse in which the moon turned red, but that would not be visible in Britain, Skelton said.
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He told the PA: “People who look at a supermoon from the western US, western part of South America, Australia or Southeast Asia will see the supermoon turn purple during an eclipse of the moon on the same day.
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“This color change is not due to a physical change in the moon, but simply because the moon is drifting into the earth’s shadow.
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“Earth’s atmosphere bends sunlight and immerses the moon in purple-red light.
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“Even though British stargazers cannot see the lunar eclipse, the supermoon is still worth seeing.”
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