Things are looking bright.
Don’t let daylight savings time get the best of you — sure we’ve gained an extra hour of daylight, but it won’t be the sun that’s shining bright around seven this evening. That big glowing sphere will actually be this year’s second supermoon, also referred to as the Super Worm Moon, in a line-up of four back-to-back supermoons taking place in 2020.
If you want to catch the moon at its biggest and brightest this month, be sure to set an alarm reminding you to head outside at about 7:12p tonight. According to Time and Date, Angelenos can expect the ‘Worm Moon’ to look its best just after moonrise. Some of the best places to catch tonight’s big ol’ moon include the beach, Griffith Observatory, and the Hollywood Bowl overlook!
Despite the moon’s consecutive showdowns for the next couple of months, supermoons are actually quite rare. National Geographic describes the astrological phenomenon as a full moon positioned on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun (aligned in syzygy) while also being at its closest point in orbit to the planet (a state called perigee). When this happens, the supermoon can appear up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than when the moon is furthest away from our planet!
A closer and brighter moon is believed to cause higher-than-usual perigean tides because of its extra pull of gravity, which means grunion season has officially commenced! Check out a full schedule of the 2020 runs where you can witness thousands of shimmering flopping fish wash up on the Californian shore, here!
Can’t catch the supermoon tonight? Don’t worry your pretty little head; there will be two more full supermoons happening on April 9 and May 7 this year, with April’s supermoon being the biggest and brightest of 2020!
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