“Super Moon” Night

Thanks to an optical illusion in the sky, the moon will appear bigger and brighter than normal in the San Francisco Bay Area the night of May 5, 2012 during what astronomers call a “super moon.”

Because the sun is about 50,000 miles closer to the earth than at its furthest point – and it’s a full moon – the moon will appear about 14% larger and 30% brighter than most full moons.

The moon will appear its biggest around 8:34 p.m. and will align with the sun one minute later, appearing even more resplendent, according to NASA.

The best time to observe the super moon is when the moon is near the horizon – during either moonrise (8:03 pm) or moonset (5:35 am on May 6th) – thanks to having objects in the foreground (like buildings or trees) to provide reference points for estimating the moon’s size

Source: SF Appeal