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Jun 22, 2013
Perigee's Full Moon
Image Credit & Copyright: Anthony Ayiomamitis (TWAN)
Courtesy of http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
Perigee's Full Moon
Image Credit & Copyright: Anthony Ayiomamitis (TWAN)
Courtesy of http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
A big, bright, beautiful Full Moon will rise at sunset on Sunday.
Its exact full phase (June 23, 11:32 UT)
will occur shortly before it
reaches perigee,
the closest point to Earth in the Moon's orbit, and make it the
largest Full Moon of 2013.
But
such circumstances are not very rare.
The full lunar phase falls near the Moon's orbit perigee about every
14 lunar
months.
That means the following Full Perigee Moon will be on August 10,
2014, the 14th Full Moon after June 23.
On May 5, 2012, 14 Full Moons ago,
this
inspired telescopic night skyscape captured the Full Perigee Moon
rising over Cape Sounion,
Greece and the ancient
Temple of Poseidon.
