New Delhi: Astronomers got a special treat on August 30 when a rare celestial event known as a Super Blue Moon became visible in the sky across the nation.
A Supermoon and a Blue Moon rarely overlap, making Wednesday night's moon a rare sight. Super blue moons occur on average every 10 years, according to NASA. The next super blue moon won't happen again until January 2037.
When the Moon comes closest to Earth, it appears much larger in the sky. As a result, it is known as a Supermoon. This Supermoon is considered a rare celestial event because it is the second to occur in the month of August, following the first on August 1.
A blue moon has nothing to do with the colour of the Moon. NASA defines it as the second full moon in a single month. "Once in a blue moon" occurs every two and a half years on average.
Reportedly, The Blue Moon was at its brightest about 9:30 p.m. (IST), while the Blue Super Moon will be at its brightest around 7:30 a.m. (IST) on August 31.
The visuals of a super blue moon from Guwahati, Assam were indeed a rare sight.
Similarly, everyone was excited to get the sight of a super blue moon in Kolkata. Visuals from Bihar also amazed everyone.
Marvellous visuals came from Lucknow that looked beautiful and one can watch it for hours.
“About 25 per cent of all full moons are supermoons, but only 3 per cent of full moons are blue moons,” wrote NASA scientists on the Earth’s Moon website. “The time between super blue moons is quite irregular - it can be as much as 20 years - but in general, 10 years is the average. The next super blue moons will occur in a pair, in January and March 2037,” as per the New York Post.
A Supermoon is a full Moon that occurs when the Moon is at perigee, its closest distance to the Earth. The Moon appears 14 per cent larger than the “micromoon”, when the Moon is furthest away from Earth on its elliptical orbit, according to London’s Natural History Museum. The Supermoon also casts 30 per cent more light on Earth compared to the dimmest full Moon, reported the New York Post. —ANI
