This Is Your Last Chance to See a Supermoon This Year
Don't forget to look up at the sky tonight, because the last supermoon of the year will rise this evening.
The third and final supermoon of 2019 — called the Super Worm Moon because it's the time of year when earthworms emerge after the long winter — follows last month's Super Snow Moon and the Super Blood Wolf Moon in January. As far as supermoons go, this one is even more special because it coincides with the spring equinox. This celestial timing hasn't happened since the year 2000, according to Earthsky.org.
Supermoons occur when a full moon is at the point in its orbit when it's closest to Earth, making it appear larger and brighter than normal. Technically, the moon actually reached its perigree (the point closest to Earth) yesterday, but it won't be a completely full moon until tonight at 9:43pm ET, Earthsky reported. Still, the best time to see it is right at dusk.
Once it rises, you won't need a telescope or any special equipment to admire the satellite. Just look up at the night sky and enjoy the celestial spectacle. And of course, if you happen to be on a plane tonight, be sure to snag a window seat (even if you're more of an aisle person).
Aside from being pretty to look at, these supermoons have cultural and environmental significance, too. And you don't have to be into astrology to believe in its effects.
“It has a bigger impact on the force of the tides than a lot of people might imagine,” Tristan Gooley, author of "The Nature Instinct" and editor of The Natural Navigator, told Forbes. “If you’re within 20 miles of the coast you’ll notice an impact on the behavior of birds and all animals.”
After this, there won't be another supermoon until April 8, 2020. And the next time a supermoon coincides with the vernal equinox? Not until a decade later, in March 2030.
