The last Supermoon of the year, dubbed the “Flower Moon,” is expected to appear this Thursday, May 7. The full Moon in May was named the Flower Moon by several Native American tribes because of the large number of flowers that bloom during the month.
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The term “Supermoon” was coined in 1979 by astrologer Richard Nolle and refers to a full moon or a new moon that nearly coincides with the time that the Moon comes closest to the Earth in its elliptical orbit. Just like far away objects generally look small in the distance and appear larger the closer they are to the observer, the same principle applies to a Supermoon. The Moon on May 7 will appear approximately 7% bigger and 15% brighter than it usually is.
Full Moon tomorrow (7th May) at 11.45am #FlowerMoon #SuperMoon #FullMoon https://t.co/q9uTPLKur6 pic.twitter.com/sAU92ZfxU4
— Stonehenge U.K (@ST0NEHENGE) May 6, 2020
To find out the best viewing time in your area, the Farmer’s Almanac’s moonrise and moonset calculator will give you the optimal window of time.
To top it all off, a meteor shower from Halley’s Comet is expected to peak around the appearance of the Supermoon.
Watch the video below from Lowell Observatory for more details about the last Supermoon of 2020. They will be live streaming the event as well as identifying Apollo Moon landing sites and other key features of the Moon’s surface.