Friday The 13th Brings Strange Celestial Events
DETROIT (WWJ) -- The worlds of astronomy and superstition will collide on Friday and could produce spectacular results. For many it will be a good day to look up, for others it's one to hide under the bed.
Friday night will feature a rare "Super Moon" -- a full moon when the natural satellite is at its closest point to the Earth. At perigee, the moon lies only 221,802 kilometers from the Earth along its orbit. Later this month on May 19, the moon will reach its apogee — the farthest point from the Earth, at 252,555 miles away.
According to Live Science, a full moon won't fall on a Friday the 13th again until 2049.
Also, early this week the Sun spewed a coronal mass ejection toward Earth -- or highly charged matter at a high speed.
When the particles pass, it can cause a communication-disrupting geomagnetic storm affecting satellites and perhaps disrupt radios and other communications.
So if the moonlight shines brighter than usual through your window tonight and your radio suddenly goes out, don't worry -- it's science, not bad luck!
