The final supermoon of 2020 will brighten the night sky this week, offering Filipino skygazers one last chance to view the moon at its biggest and brightest.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administrationsaid the moon will appear at its fullest on May 7, Thursday, at 6:45 p.m.
It will appear 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter than a regular full moon, thus, the term “supermoon.” But sometimes, a 30 percent difference in brightness can easily be masked by clouds or the competing glare of urban lights.
According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the supermoon on Thursday will be the last in a series of four supermoons this year. The other three supermoons occurred last February 9, March 10, and April 8.
PAGASA noted that the supermoon is actually a modern astrological term coined by Richard Nolle, defining it as “a new or full moon that occurs when the moon is within 90 percent of its closest approach to Earth in a given orbit.”
In astronomy, it is called a “perigee full moon,” or a full moon that is closer to Earth than average.
This month, PAGASA said, will also mark the occurrence of Eta Aquarid meteor shower, as a result of the Earth’s passing close to the orbit of Halley’s Comet twice a year.
“The radiant of the meteor shower will virtually lie on the celestial equator and is more favorable to Southern Hemisphere viewers,” it said.
“In the Northern Hemisphere, about 20 or more meteors per hour at the pre-dawn sky of May 6 may be seen. It is best to observe only a few hours before dawn,” it added. (Ellalyn V. Ruiz)