Already in September, a supermoon creates a spectacle in the night sky. But in October this phenomenon is exceeded again and the celestial body comes much closer to Earth than usual. This makes it look even bigger and brighter.
October 17th has an impressive celestial event in store for us. The full moon in October is the brightest of the year. Its special proximity to the earth and the resulting brightness and size make this natural phenomenon particularly fascinating. The satellite will only be around 357,500 kilometers away from Earth. This is significantly closer than the usual distance of around 385,000 kilometers on average.
At perigee, the point at which it is closest to Earth, it will be only 357,175 kilometers away. This small distance makes it appear as a so-called supermoon. However, this is a popular term and not a scientific definition. Nevertheless, the fact that the moon is superior in brightness and size to the September supermoon is impressive.
Compared to last month’s supermoon, the October moon will appear even brighter and larger due to its closer location. With an apparent diameter of about 33.2 arcminutes, it exceeds the September moon, which was only 31.1 arcminutes in diameter. This makes the current full moon probably the most impressive of the year. An arc minute is a measure of angular sizes in the sky, with one arc minute corresponding to one sixtieth of a degree. This indicates how large the moon appears from Earth.
Visibility and accurate observation times
The supermoon will peak at 1:27 p.m. on October 17, but will remain invisible in the daytime sky. It will only rise in the east around 6:11 p.m. and will be visible all night long. The moment is particularly impressive when the moon reaches the highest point of its nightly orbit at 1:20 a.m. on October 18th.
Due to its proximity to Earth, the supermoon reflects up to 30 percent more light than usual. This not only makes it appear brighter, but with a diameter of 33.2 arc minutes it is also around 14 percent larger than an ordinary full moon. This makes for a breathtaking spectacle in the night sky.
In addition to its impressive appearance, the supermoon also has an impact on the Earth. Due to its proximity, the celestial body has a greater attraction and thus strengthens the tidal forces. During a supermoon, these forces can be up to 20 percent more intense than during a normal full moon. This leads to higher tides, known as spring tides, and stronger ebbs.
The October full moon is traditionally called the “Hunter’s Moon” because hunters used the bright moonlight to track game in the fields during this time. At this time the game was increasingly looking for food in order to build up fat reserves for the winter, which made hunting easier. In Germany, the October moon is also known as the “wine moon” because it falls during the time of the grape harvest.
