The Moon had the nearest approach to the Earth on May 26, and therefore appeared closest and largest Full Moon of 2021. A Supermoon and a total lunar eclipse have not occurred together in nearly six years. The lunar eclipse was partially observed in India.
What is a supermoon?
The Moon’s orbit around Earth is elliptical. The point of the orbit closest to Earth is called perigee, while the point farthest from Earth is known as apogee. On average, the distance is about 382,900 kilometers (238,000 miles) from the Moon’s center to the center of Earth. The Perigee is when the average distance is about 360,000 km from the Earth and rhe Apogee is a point of time when the distance is the most about 405,000 km from the Earth.
When a full Moon is at nearest distance between the Earth and the Moon, it not only does it appear to be brighter but it is also larger than a regular full moon. As per NASA, the term supermoon was coined by astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979.
On 26th April 2021, there was another full moon, but the supermoon that will be witnessed on May 26 will be closer to the Earth by a margin of 0.04 percent.
It lunar eclipse had blood red effect. This is due to the Earth blocking some light from the Sun from reaching the moon. Thus it gets red colour due to Earth’s atmosphere filters the light.
