Sunday night's Supermoon was a bigger and brighter full moon than usual making it visible for sky-gazers across most of the planet yesterday. NASA officials say it the kick off to a very special a"Supermoon Trilogy including a lunar eclipse with three Supermoons occurring in just a few months. But Sunday's Full Cold moon marks the first (and last) "Supermoon"of 2017.
The Dec. 3 full moon is the first of three consecutive Supermoons, including a lunar eclipse. The next Supermoons will happen on Jan. 1 and Jan. 31, 2018.
Supermoons happen at a point in its orbit at which it is closest to Earth. This makes the moon appear up to 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than usual. Pair that up with a lunar eclipse, and you will have a spectacular view of the moon turning dark as it moves out of the sun's light and into the shadow of the Earth.
NASA Moon recommends that you mark your calendars. If you only have time to catch one of them, be sure to check out the "extra-special" Jan. 31 supermoon, NASA said in a statement on Friday, Dec. 1. The late January supermoon will take place during a total lunar eclipse visible from western North America, the Pacific and Eastern Asia. It will also be a blue moon, too.
As if the Jan. 31 moon isn't special enough, that supermoon lunar eclipse will also be a "blue moon." That's a term for the second full moon in a month. Blue moons only happen about every 2.5 years, so it's worth going outside to take a look.
You don't need any special equipment to look at the full moon – just your eyes. To look at the moon in more detail, you can use a pair of binoculars or a small telescope. Happy sky-gazing!
📸 🌕 If you missed last night's night Supernoon, check out some of the best #Supermoon , #Supermoon2017, #ColdMoon posted photos.
