The last supermoon of 2023 rises late this week
The next supermoon won’t occur until late next year
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - The fourth and final supermoon of 2023 will rise in the Alabama sky Thursday evening. It’s your last chance to witness a supermoon until next fall, so I highly recommend checking this one out!
It will rise in the eastern sky around 6:25 p.m. Thursday and set in the western sky around 6:45 a.m. Friday. Those times are for the Montgomery area; if you’re interested in finding the moonrise and moonset times for your city or town, click here.
If you venture out to check it out, you will be looking at the super harvest moon. Harvest is the name given to the full moon that occurs closest to the autumnal equinox, which occurred this past Saturday morning.
And “super” comes from the fact that it will be a supermoon. A supermoon occurs when the moon’s orbit is closest to earth at the same time it’s in its full phase. This is referred to as perigee.
What makes a supermoon special is it appears bigger and brighter than a typical full moon. In fact, supermoons can be upwards of 14% larger and 30% brighter than a normal full moon!
Supermoons are not that rare, as three or four happen every year. They can happen at any point in the year, they can happen back-to-back and they can all happen in a single season depending on the year.
Next year’s supermoons will happen in September, October and November. That’s a long wait for the next supermoon if you miss out in the one this Thursday night!
For those interested in capturing photos, I recommend being out near moonrise in the early evening or near moonset early Friday morning. That’s when the moon looks more “dramatic” and large because it’s interacting with the horizons.
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