The largest full moon in the last 18 years will be in the skies over Rochester until 7:14 AM. If you get a chance to go out and observe the moon, here are some of the interesting facts.
The last time the moon was this close to Earth was in March 1993. The ‘perigee moon’ should be 14% bigger and nearly 30% brighter than a typical full moon because of this closer distance.
It intrigues many people to know that the moon’s orbit around Earth isn’t a perfect circle, it’s actually elliptical. This means that at certain points of each month the Moon is closer to Earth (Perigee) and at certain points each month the Moon is further from Earth (Apogee).
The perigee moon is approximately 31,000 miles closer to Earth then when the Moon is at apogee. The distance between the Earth and the Moon is about 252,000 miles at apogee for reference.
This accounts for the increased brightness and size, so now its time to go out and enjoy!
