Perigee Moon (aka "SuperMoon") Sunday, June 23, 2013

Later this month, on Sunday, June 23rd, the moon will be at its "perigee" (closest orbital point to earth) and become full at 7:32 am, only 221,824 miles from our planet, offering skywatchers a spectacular view of an extra-big, extra-bright moon, nicknamed a supermoon.

Not only does the moon's perigee coincide with full moon this month, but this perigee will be the nearest to Earth of any this year. This happens because the moon's orbit is not perfectly circular.  These perigee moons are often referred to as a "SuperMoon".

To view this upcoming "supermoon" to best effect, look for it just after it rises or before it sets, when it is close to the horizon. There, you can catch a view of the moon behind buildings or trees, an effect which produces an optical illusion, making the moon seem even larger than it really is.

When the perigee moon lies close to the horizon, it can appear absolutely enormous. That is when the famous “moon illusion” combines with reality to produce a truly stunning view.  

For reasons not fully understood by astronomers or psychologists, a low-hanging moon looks incredibly large when hovering near trees, buildings and other foreground objects. The fact that the moon will be much closer than usual this weekend will only serve to amplify this strange effect.

And yes, I know what you are all wondering......  

Will the tides be higher than usual? 

Yes, as all residents of Broad Channel are very aware, all full moons bring higher-than-usual tides, and perigee full moons bring the highest (and lowest) tides of all. 

Each month, on the day of the full moon, the moon, Earth and sun are aligned, with Earth in between. This line up creates wide-ranging tides, known as spring tides. High spring tides climb up especially high and, on the same day, low tides plunge especially low. 

And no, the term "spring" tide has nothing to do with the season, it is simply an astronomical term, albeit, a confusing one.

Will the high tides cause flooding? 

Probably not, unless a strong weather system moves into the coastline where you are or you are on a below grade road. 

The morning high tide on June 23rd will be at 8:50 am, 5.8' in height.  That evening's high tide will be at 9:13pm, 7.1' in height.

Still, keep an eye on the weather because, as we are all know,  storms do have a large potential to accentuate high spring tides. 

The good news is that a check of several long-range forecasts for our area, although not particularly accurate, do not indicate any significant weather events for our area at that time.

Happy "SuperMoon!"