Supermoon in a Sea of Masts
The Moon revolves around Earth in an elliptical orbit, and in most years there are 12 full Moons. About 3 times a year a full Moon occurs at its closest point to Earth during its orbit, its perigee, and the Moon appears larger and brighter becoming what is commonly known as a 'supermoon'. At its perigee, the distance between the Earth and the Moon is 225,623 miles / 363,104 km.
At its apogee, the farthest point from Earth in the moon's orbit, the Moon is 252,088 miles / 405,696 km away from Earth. When compared with full Moons which occur at its apogee, perigee supermoons appear 14% larger and 30% brighter.
The difference between these two distances is 26,465 miles / 42,592 km, which is more than three times larger than the Earth's 7,917 miles / 12,742 km diameter.
Supermoon in a Sea of Masts
The Moon revolves around Earth in an elliptical orbit, and in most years there are 12 full Moons. About 3 times a year a full Moon occurs at its closest point to Earth during its orbit, its perigee, and the Moon appears larger and brighter becoming what is commonly known as a 'supermoon'. At its perigee, the distance between the Earth and the Moon is 225,623 miles / 363,104 km.
At its apogee, the farthest point from Earth in the moon's orbit, the Moon is 252,088 miles / 405,696 km away from Earth. When compared with full Moons which occur at its apogee, perigee supermoons appear 14% larger and 30% brighter.
The difference between these two distances is 26,465 miles / 42,592 km, which is more than three times larger than the Earth's 7,917 miles / 12,742 km diameter.