Super pink moon: NASA’s top tips for April skywatchers
Skywatchers are in for a treat in April when the super pink moon, the biggest supermoon of 2020, lights up the night sky.
The April full moon is the closest supermoon of the year, which means that it is the largest, according to EarthSky.
“That’s because this full moon more closely coincides with lunar perigee – the moon’s closest point to Earth in its monthly obit – than any other full moon in the year 2020,” the website explains.
Supermoons happen when the moon’s elliptical orbit brings it to the closest point to the Earth while the moon is full. The phrase was coined in 1979, according to NASA.
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The space agency explains that the moon will be at perigee, at 2:08 pm EDT on April 7. The moon will be full at 10:35 pm EDT that day.
Detail of the ‘Full Moon Pink’ view from Oaxaca, Mexico on April 20, 2019 in Oaxaca, Mexico – file photo. (Photo by Carlos Tischler/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“For the best view of this lovely spring Moon, find an open area and watch as the Moon rises just above the horizon, at which point it will appear its biggest and take on a golden hue!,” explains the Old Farmer’s Almanac, on its website.
The April full moon is known as the pink moon, on account of the herb moss pink, also known as wild ground phlox, according to NASA. In the eastern U.S., the herb moss pink is one of the earliest widespread flowers of Spring, the space agency explains, on its website. “Other names for this Moon include the Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon, and among coastal tribes the Fish Moon, as this was the time that the shad swam upstream to spawn,” it says.
SNOW MOON STUNS AS ONE OF THE LARGEST FULL MOONS OF 2020 LIGHTS UP THE SKY
Skygazers recently enjoyed the stunning March full moon, or worm moon, which was also a supermoon.
Some experts described the spectacular February full moon, or snow moon, as a supermoon, although others feel that it does not qualify as that category of celestial event.
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The snow moon was one of the largest full moons of 2020.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers
