Second and largest supermoon of 2019 will shine above Canada tonight

Feb 19 2019, 11:01 pm

This week, the earth will get to experience the second supermoon of the year.

And it’s also the biggest full moon supermoon of 2019.

While the moon looked bright and full last night, it will reach its peak full phase tonight.

So what is a supermoon?

It’s when the full moon is closest to the earth, and according to EarthSky, this February full moon reaches its exact full phase closer to the time of perigee than any other full moon this year.

This year’s first supermoon occurred on January 21, and there is another one happening on March 31.

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EarthSky explains that all of these full moons are less than 362,000 km distant as measured from the centers of the Earth and moon. In contrast, the year’s farthest full moon on September 14, 2019, will reside at a distance of 406,248 km.

According to NASA, to watch tonight’s supermoon, or any full moon, simply look for the moon to rise in the east as the sun sets in the west.

“The moon will look extremely large when it rises and sets. This ‘moon illusion’ happens when the moon is close to the horizon and there are objects within our line of sight such as trees or buildings,” says NASA astronomer Mitzi Adams. “Because these relatively close objects are in front of the moon, our brain is tricked into thinking the moon is much closer to the objects that are in our line of sight.”

So wherever you are tonight, don’t forget to look up.

Daily Hive StaffDaily Hive Staff

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