We'll be seeing the moon in its most prominent and brightest form tonight, April 7th. This month's supermoon will be 221,851 miles (357,035km) away from Earth - compared to the average Moon-Earth distance of 238,855 miles (384,400km).
The moon will appear bigger than usual Tuesday night into the early hours of Wednesday. It's the first full moon of the northern spring, which is why it's called the "pink moon."
However, the moon won't be sporting a pink hue in spite of what it's colloquially called. The color is a reference to a pink flower called phlox subulata, which grows in spring in the east of North America.
Tonight, the moon will be so close to Earth that it will appear up to 30% bigger than it looks. This is the only explanation why the moon seems to change in size. It doesn't grow; it doesn't shrink. It merely appears that way because of how it orbits our planet. Pray, it won't be cloudy tonight, so you can see our satellite in its full glory. If it gets hazy, the moon might appear slightly orange and not so bright, but at the very least, you get to see its humongous size.
Perigee-syzygy is the term used for when the moon is at its closest point to Earth. This happens because of the planet's slightly elliptical orbit. When the moon is at its closest, it appears bigger to us earthlings, thus the term supermoon.
Quarantines and lockdowns have us all indoors, but the good thing about moon gazing is that you only have to step on your balcony, and there it is. As a matter of geometry, full moons always rise around sunset, so step outside -- not too far from your place -- and look up. If you're around people, be sure to observe proper social distancing. The optical illusion will make the moon appear so big, you'd think it isn't real.
If you can't get a peek outdoors tonight or the weather isn't too good to head out, there's a livestream available courtesy of the Virtual Telescope Project, which will record the entire event from Rome. The Lowell Observatory in Arizona, USA, will likewise livestream tonight's super pink moon.
If you can't watch any of the streams, be sure to catch the next supermoon next month, May 7th. Hopefully, by then, lockdowns will be lifted, and the whole world is coronavirus-free.
