Hello DMV from the Azamara Quest sailing through the Arabian Sea. We enjoyed an almost full moon on Sunday night — we are 10 and a half hours ahead of you — but are looking forward to the full worm supermoon on Monday!
March’s full moon is named “worm moon” since it heralds the beginning of spring and the movement of worms in the soil that come with it. Each month’s full moon has a variety of names associated with it.
But we get a bonus tonight with the full moon also being a supermoon, the first of three in a row for 2020. A supermoon is when the full moon occurs when the moon itself is within 90% of being at perigee, or closest to the Earth during the current lunar month.
Monday night’s full worm supermoon will be the second closest of the three, about 8% larger and 15% brighter than an average full moon. You probably won’t be able to detect the size difference by looking at the moon but it might appear brighter than usual to you.
Catching a glimpse of the full worm supermoon is easy. It will rise in the east at sunset and be in the sky all night long. While you are waiting for the moonrise, be sure to admire beautiful and brilliant Venus in the western sky.
I am hoping to photograph the full worm supermoon as it rises above the sea horizon — that should be a sight to behold. You might want to try photographing it as well, especially if you see it rising near a landmark or in the mountains or along the seashore. Just set your camera to its automatic mode and see what you got.
This is the final full moon of this winter, so make it a celebration of its departure and the arrival of spring which starts March 19th.
Oh, and when looking at the moon, wink at it in remembrance of Neil Armstrong — the first human to walk there.
On a personal note. March 2020 marks my 14th year as WTOP’s space reporter and contributor. We have a lot more space to cover in the years to come!
Follow me on Twitter at @skyguyinva and my daily blog to keep up with the latest news in astronomy and space exploration. You can email me at skyguyinva@gmail.com.
