Hello from the middle of the Atlantic Ocean aboard Regent Seven Seas EXPLORER. It has been a typical trans-Atlantic crossing in November - read cloudy and stormy - BUT it appears to be clearing just in time for Supermoon Sunday http://earthsky.org/moon-phases/full-moon?mc_cid=bd4238a2b4&mc_eid=9aeb2a4318 ! I am hoping to photograph the Full Cold Supermoon as it rises above the sea horizon - that should be something to see.
On Sunday at sunset you will see a glorious Full Cold https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/space/solar-system/full-moon/ Supermoon rising in the East after sunset that may appear brighter and a bit larger than other Full Moons of 2017. The Moon will be at Full phase (directly opposite the Sun) at 10:47 a.m. EST on Sunday and at perigee (closest to the Earth for the month) on December 4th at 3:42 a.m. EST - less than 24 hours apart hence the Supermoon.
This is the only Supermoon for 2017 and is also the closest Full Moon for the year.
This time of year will also make this Supermoon brighter as explained by NASA, ”because the Earth will be at its closest to the Sun (called perihelion) in early January, the sunlight reaching and reflecting off the Moon this time of year is about 7% more intense (than at aphelion in early July), making winter-time supermoons even brighter.”
http://spaceweather.com estimates that this Full Cold Suppermoon will be 8% wider and 16% brighter than an average Full Moon. Experienced moon watchers can tell the size difference but the extra brightness is usually noticed by all.
Go out tonight and enjoy the almost Full Cold Supermoon. If Sunday is a wash out don’t fret. We will have two Supermoons in January - the second being a Blue Moon that will also undergo a total lunar eclipse https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/news-articles/a-supermoon-trilogy that will only be a partial lunar eclipse before sunrise for the DMV.
Oh, and when looking at the Moon, wink at it in remembrance of Neil Armstrong https://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2012/aug/HQ_12_600_armstrong_family.html - first human to walk on the Moon
Sky Guy In The Atlantic
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