Supermoon Facts To Impress Your Date
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Sunday's full moon will be bigger than usual, and brighter, as well.
It's a supermoon.
It's the second of 3 this year, and it's not called 'super' just because it's swell to look at.
If you plan on going out and gazing at the moon with a special someone, here are a few facts to help you impress them because you can actually tell them why the moon looks so huge, and where the term 'supermoon' came from.
People began calling the phenomenon a supermoon after astrologer Richard Nolle added the 'super' back in 1979 to denote how close the moon appears to be.
In fact, supermoons are close. They occur when the moon reaches the nearest point to Earth in its Elliptical orbit -- the perigee – just 360,000 kilometers away. When it is furthest from Earth, it is at its apogee.
Enough with the scientific babble. You'll risk putting your date to sleep.
If you must say something, tell them according to superstition, the supermoon has often been linked to natural disasters, including most recently, the devastating 8.9-magnitude earthquake that hit Japan and Hurricane Katrina. Others believe it increases a woman's fertility. Add, that experts say none of this is true.
Now, be quiet for a moment. No one likes a know-it-all.
Then, whisper that the next supermoon will happen on October 27.
(Author's note: This article from July 2014 was updated on August 28, 2015 and again on September 19, 2015.)
CBSSF.com writer, producer Jan Mabry is also executive producer and host of The Bronze Report. She lives in Northern California. Follow her on Twitter @janmabr.
