"Super Moon" appears tonight!

Xinhuanet, Beijing, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Tonight, a "supermoon" will appear in the night sky, which is also the "second largest full moon" of the year. According to Wang Kechao, the science director of the Purple Mountain Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the full moon will be at its fullest at 19:52. As long as the weather is fine, people from all over my country can enjoy a big, round moon, like a silver plate hanging high in the night sky.

What makes a “supermoon” “super”?

According to Wang Kechao, when the earth is located directly between the sun and the moon, the moon seen on Earth is the roundest, which is called a "full moon" or "wang"; when the full moon is near perigee, it looks larger than usual, so it is called a "supermoon."

The "supermoon" that appeared on June 14 was at its fullest at 19:52, and the moon passed its perigee at 7:23 on June 15. The difference between the fullest moment and the time of perigee was less than 12 hours. When the moon passed its perigee, the distance from the earth was less than 360,000 kilometers, so the apparent diameter of this full moon was very large, making it the "second largest full moon" this year.

On the evening of June 14, after the sun sets, this bright full moon will rise from the southeast of the sky and illuminate the night sky all night. People only need to stand on their balcony or yard to enjoy this beautiful scenery with their naked eyes.

The biggest full moon of the year will occur in July

What if it rains on the night of June 14? Don't be too sorry, even if you miss this "supermoon", you will have another chance next month! The "biggest full moon" of the year will be on July 14, and the fullest moment will be fixed at 2:38 in the morning of that day. Friends who miss the "big moon" on the 14th can also "squat" for this "biggest full moon" of the year in July.

According to Wang Kechao, there will only be two "supermoons" this year, so friends who love to appreciate the moon must seize the opportunity to see the most beautiful "white jade plate" of the year.

Why does the moon wax and wane in its phases?

“People have joys and sorrows, separations and reunions; the moon waxes and wanes.” When the moon is full in the sky, we can’t help but wonder why the moon waxes and wanes?

In fact, the waxing and waning of the moon corresponds to the cycle of "lunar phases" in astronomy.

Wang Kechao introduced that when the moon is located in the middle of the sun and the earth, the moon phase is "new moon"; when the earth is in the middle of the sun and the moon, the moon phase is "full moon". The interval from one "new moon" to the next "new moon" is one lunar month, and a full moon will appear about in the middle of this month. The full moon also corresponds to a specific moment, called "full moon". A "synodic month" is an average of 29.53 days.

Among all the "moon phases", the most popular one is "望", because "望" corresponds to the full moon. Let's look forward to the full moon at 19:52 tonight!

Producer: Zhu Yonglei Qiu Xiaomin

Executive Planning: Li You

Director: Yuan Han

Copywriter: Pang Xueting

Later stage: Chen Zheng

Xinhua Interviews Jointly produced by Xinhuanet Jiangsu Branch