The Supermoon Is Coming & So Are The King Tides
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- South Florida will soon be in for another celestial treat with a showstopper of a supermoon but the beautiful sight in the sky may also bring some flooding to South Florida with the arrival of the November King Tides.
On Monday, November 14th, you may notice the full moon will look bigger and brighter than usual. Actually, it'll appear 14-percent bigger and 30-percent brighter, making it a supermoon.
This month's is especially 'super' for two reasons: it is the only supermoon this year to be completely full, and it is the closest moon to Earth since 1948 – when a gallon of gas cost just 16 cents. The moon won't be this super again until 2034! That makes this supermoon extra super.
The scientific term for the supermoon phenonmenon is "perigree moon" or the point when the Moon is closest to the Earth in its monthly orbit.
Depending on where you're viewing it from, the difference between a supermoon and a regular full moon may be difficult. If the Moon is hanging high overhead, and you have no buildings or landmarks to compare it to, it can be tricky to tell that it's larger than usual.
But if you're viewing from a spot where the Moon is closer to the horizon, it can create what's known as 'moon illusion' which makes the moon look unnaturally large when viewed through trees, buildings, or other foreground objects, according to NASA.
One more impact of such a close full moon is the tides, which anyone near the coast will certainly start to notice this weekend. They're called 'King Tides,' aka perigean spring tides. When the sun, moon and Earth align, solar gravity combines with lunar gravity, creating very high and very low tides.
King Tides do affect certain coastal areas in South Florida including Miami Beach.
Here is the King Tide schedule:
- November 12th: 6:40 a.m. & 6:33 p.m.
- November 13: 7:32 a.m. & 7:43 p.m.
- November 14, the night of the Supermoon: 8:23 a.m. & 8:34 p.m.
- November 15: 9:14 a.m. & 9:25 p.m.
- November 16: 10:05 a.m. & 10:17 p.m.
- November 17: 10:56 a.m. & 11:10 p.m.
- November 18: 11:49 a.m.
The City of Miami Beach will continue installing storm water pump stations to assist with the flooding in lowest lying areas, regularly clean the stormwater system to reduce pollutants from entering the waterways and conduct regular inspections to identify flood impacted areas.
