Super Pink Moon: When and how to watch the biggest full moon?

The wait is finally over for the enthusiasts as on April 8 at around 8 am the celestial phenomenon of Super Pink Moon will be visible, amid the gloomy lockdown due to the coronavirus COVID-19. Astronomers call the Super Pink Moon as a perigean full moon because of its close proximity to earth.

On this day the Moon can appear 30 per cent larger than on an average day. According to some reports, the April 8 supermoon will be the biggest and brightest supermoon of this year, 2020.

What is a Super Moon?

The term Super Moon is a reference to the instances when the moon's orbit is close to earth appearing larger and brighter than it usually does. On the night of April 7 and morning of April 8, the moon is expected to be just around 356,000 km from the earth while at most times, the distance between the earth and the moon is around 384,000 km. In fact, the super moon is around as much as 14% larger and 30% brighter than the full moon when it is further away from earth.

When does a Super Moon occur? 

Since the moon’s orbit is in an oval shape there is the closest point and the farthest point. A super moon is when the moon is at the closest point to Earth, while when the moon is at its furthest distance in the Orbit it is called the micro moon.

When to watch the Super Pink Moon?

The key times to view the celestial phenomenon are at moonrise on Tuesday, April 7, 2020, and at moonset on April 8, 2020. At these times the moon will look big and beautiful. When the moon rises, its immense glare is dulled because of the Earth’s atmosphere. The moon will show delicate orange, then pale yellow, hues for a few minutes.

How to watch the supermoon?

Some people will be able to watch the phenomenon directly, while some might have to watch it online.  The Super Pink Moon will appear in India at 8:05 am. The supermoon enthusiasts in the country can watch this event live online. Slooh telescope will stream the forthcoming supermoon live on its YouTube channel.

The last supermoon--“Super Worm Moon”-- was witnessed on March 9, 2020, other dates related to supermoons are given below: 

-February 8: “Super Snow Moon”
-March 9: “Super Worm Moon”
-April 8: “Super Pink Moon”
-May 7: “Super Flower Moon”