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2018 what a way to start.!
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space otter:
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/double-newyear-supermoon_us_5a481a15e4b0b0e5a7a7011c
12/30/2017 08:43 pm ET
New Year Kicks Off With Supermoon Lunapalooza
2018’s biggest supermoon will be followed at the end of January by a “super blue blood moon.”
By Mary Papenfuss
vid at link
No matter what the rest of the New Year brings, earthlings are in for a double treat in January with the appearance of two supermoons. The first one rises the night of New Year’s Day. The second — a bound-to-be-memorable “super blue blood moon” — comes the last night of the month, topped off by a lunar eclipse.
A supermoon is a full moon that appears at the perigee, the closest point in the moon’s orbit to Earth. Supermoons appear to be about 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than full moons that appear at the apogee, the farthest point in the orbit, according to NASA.
The January supermoons are the end of a trilogy of big moon treats that began Dec. 3 with a full cold moon (a December full moon) that made for some spectacular photos.
Supermoons hang around all night, are easy to see and are not damaging to the eyes, no matter how long you moon-gaze. They often appear at their most spectacular as they rise and set, NASA notes.
The Jan. 1 supermoon will be the biggest of the year. The moon will appear to be oversized for a few nights after that, though will no longer be a full moon.
For those still nursing a hangover the night of Jan. 1, an even more intriguing supermoon will rise the night of Jan. 31. That will be the second full moon of the month, which is usually called a “blue moon” because a double full-moon month occurs essentially once in a blue moon — about every 2½ years. A blue moon is even rarer when it’s a supermoon.
But that won’t be the only rarity that night. The super blue moon will also occur during a total lunar eclipse, when the Earth moves between the sun and the moon, blocking the sun’s light from reflecting off the moon. If skies are clear, the total eclipse will be visible from eastern Asia across the Pacific Ocean to western North America.
Lunar eclipses make moons appear blood red because of the way the blocked sunlight bends. So prepare yourself for the super blue blood moon the night of the lunar eclipse. To get the full effect of the lunar eclipse, watch at moonset, NASA advises.
“Sometimes, the celestial rhythms sync up just right to wow us,” notes the space agency.
space otter:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/lunar-showstopper-1st-super-blue-blood-moon-in-35-years/ar-BBIv8i3?li=BBnb7Kz
Lunar Showstopper: 1st super blue blood moon in 35 years
Associated Press Associated Press
51 mins ago
Slideshow by Reuters good pics at link
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The moon put on a rare cosmic show Wednesday: a red blue moon, super big and super bright.
It's the first time in 35 years a blue moon has synced up with a supermoon and a total lunar eclipse, or blood moon because of its red hue.
Hawaii and Alaska had the best seats, along with the Canadian Yukon, Australia and Asia. The western U.S. also had good viewing, along with Russia.
At the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, hundreds gathered on the lawn in the wee hours, under clear skies, to bask in the celestial enchantment. Sky-gazers also lined the beach near the Santa Monica Pier, some snapping photos and others reclining in the sand, their faces turned upward.
The U.S. East Coast, Europe and most of South America and Africa were out of luck for the eclipse. But at Cape Canaveral, Florida, where a rocket delivered America's first artificial satellite to orbit exactly 60 years ago — Explorer 1 — the blue supermoon loomed large in the sky.
biggles:
This could mean something, especially as they were both at the beginning of the year.
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