Why's the Moon Big Tonight? Catch October's Supermoon

It's not every day that the moon looks this big and bright. This month, we're getting a special treat: October's supermoon. This is the closest supermoon of the year, sitting a cool 222,055 miles (357,364 kilometers) away from Earth. You might notice it looks even bigger than the supermoons we had in August and September. Why's that? Well, the moon has an oval-shaped orbit, and sometimes, it gets really close to us. When that happens, and it's full, boom! We get a supermoon. But here's a fun twist. There's a comet in town, called Comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas. It was discovered last year and has been putting on a show for stargazers in the Southern Hemisphere. Now, it's here for us in the Northern Hemisphere to enjoy. The problem is, the supermoon's brightness might wash out some of the comet's tail. But don't worry, NASA's Bill Cooke says it's still worth a look after sunset.

You might be wondering, what's a supermoon anyway? It's not a scientific term, really. It's more of a popular way to describe when a full moon gets extra close to Earth. Scientists say these supermoons can look 30% brighter, but the difference in size can be so small, only the most careful observers can tell. This year, we've had four supermoons. The one in August was 224,917 miles (361,970 kilometers) away. September's was even closer at 221,914 miles (357,144 kilometers), and we had a partial lunar eclipse too. October's is the closest yet, and November's will be 224,853 miles (361,867 kilometers) away. If you miss this month's supermoon, don't panic. There's one more coming on November 15. It's always exciting to see the moon looking so big and bright. Especially since space agencies are getting ready to explore the moon even more.

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