The first of two August supermoons will be visible across Ireland from tonight

The second of four supermoons this year, August will kick off with the Sturgeon Moon followed shortly by the Blue Moon at the end of the month – two supermoons occurring in one month is very rare and won’t happen again until 2037, so needless to say these exciting celestial events are not to be missed!

First things first, what is a supermoon? 

According to NASA, the phrase ‘supermoon’ was first coined in 1979 and the phenomenon occurs when the moon’s orbit is closest to Earth at the same time the moon is full. The moon orbits Earth in an ellipse, an oval that brings it closer to and farther from Earth as it goes around. The farthest point in this ellipse is called the apogee while the closest point is the perigee. When a full moon appears at perigee, it is approximately 14% larger and around 30% brighter than a full moon which results in a supermoon.

? We see not one, but two supermoons in August! Including a rare blue moon. Plus, the Perseids meteor shower reaches its peak.

Check out the full August astronomy outlook now. ?https://t.co/V7aMmk4h3p#Astronomy #Supermoon #Weather

— Weather & Radar UK/Ireland (@WeatherRadar_UK) July 31, 2023

The full Sturgeon Moon rises on Tuesday night – the best time to see it in Ireland, though it will also be visible on Monday and Wednesday too. In a couple of weeks’ time, the month will close out with another supermoon, this one called the full Blue Moon. 

Eclipse expert and retired NASA astrophysicist Fred Espanak told Space.com that during the full Sturgeon Moon, the moon will be 222,158 miles (357,530 km) from Earth. This is opposed to its average distance of around 238,000 miles (382,900 km) away. 

During the Aug. 30 full Blue Moon, the moon will be around 222,043 miles (357,343 km) from Earth, according to Almanac, making it the closest and brightest of 2023. The last super Blue Moon was in December 2009 and after this year, won’t reappear in the sky until August 2032. 

The so-called “summer of supermoons” ends on September 28 with the Full Corn Moon, which falls five days after the September equinox on September 23, the official end of summer in the northern hemisphere.

“This is the second supermoon of 2023. The Full Moon in August is popularly known as the Sturgeon Moon as these fish were mostly caught by Native Americans in the Great Lakes around this time of year,” said David Moore, Editor of Astronomy Ireland Magazine. The magazine is asking people to send photos or written accounts of their observations to the website for publication in a special review of the event. 

“The best time to watch is at moonrise, which is the same time the sun sets, when a further effect, called The Moon Illusion kicks in which can make the moon look even bigger to the human eye/brain combination,” Espanak continued. Moonrise will take place at 9:30pm on Monday, 10pm on Tuesday and 10:20pm on Wednesday.

This month will also see one of the best meteor showers of the year light up the sky. Weather & Radar reports that the Perseids, the result of the comet Swift-Tuttle, can produce up to 90 shooting stars an hour on a clear night. This year, the peak takes place just days before a new moon meaning… which means prime viewing conditions. The shower is expected to continue until late August so there will be plenty of chances to wish upon a shooting star.

Met Éireann forecasts that there will be lingering rain for a time overnight but they will give way to clear spells so hopefully, you get outside just long enough to catch a quick glimpse. 

Photo by Ganapathy Kumar on Unsplash