So, here we are, just a month since we talked about the last so-called Supermoon. Once again, we’re having one today, and unless you’re an avid believer that it does have a huge impact in your life, it’s nothing but an astronomical event that (surprise surprise) happens basically every year. Besides the fact that it will be the last of the year, and that we’ll have a great chance of contemplating a unique and brighter Moon, there’s nothing that special about it.
The one happening today is called a Worm Supermoon, named as such by ancient Native Americans who associated the phenomenon with the time of the year when the ground starts to soften, allowing earthworms to appear, thus attracting more birds to feed on the ground and leave more seeds. This increased and aided the harvest. For that reason, the Moon was considered a powerful element they had to praise in order to have better crops.
So, in case you didn’t learn this with the past Supermoons, they’re called that way because it’s the precise moment in which the Moon gets the closest to Earth. This phenomenon is called “perigee,” with about 226,000 miles in distance. This makes the Moon look brighter and bigger from basically any spot on the planet (well, if there’s a clear sky where you live).
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Now, visually speaking, it won’t be that different from other Supermoons; it’ll look just as glorious as the others. What makes this one special, though, astronomically speaking, is that it’s happening on the same day as the spring equinox. The last time these two phenomena occurred close to each other was in March 2000, with about a 4-hour difference. However, the last time it happened on the same day was on March 20, 1981. According to The Old Farmer’s Almanac, it won’t happen again until 2038.
As if this weren’t enough, this Supermoon is also coinciding with the passing of an asteroid, according to the Minor Planet Center. Named asteroid 2019 EA2, it will pass about 190,246 miles away from Earth, even closer than the perigee of the Moon. This one is called an Aten asteroid, or near-Earth asteroid, which makes it visible from Earth at some spots in the world. It’s expected to pass any time from today until Friday 22. If it happens today, it would make it an even more unusual astronomical moment, with three important phenomena happening simultaneously.
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So, make sure you look at the sky tonight around 9:43 pm to watch the last Supermoon of the year since we won’t have another one until February 9th, 2020.
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