Clouds, smoke may hinder viewing of rare blue supermoon in Kamloops, Okanagan
It's time to look up, way up, to see not only a rare blue moon but it's also a supermoon.
The second full moon this month is tonight, Aug. 30, making it a blue moon, a celestial phenomenon that only occurs every few years. A supermoon happens when the moon is at its fullest at the same time it hits the part of its oval orbit closest to Earth. Because they are so close to Earth, supermoons can appear a bit bigger and brighter in the sky.
The time between super blue moons is quite irregular and can be as much as 20 years, but 10 years is the average. The next super blue moons will occur in a pair, in January and March 2037, according to NASA.
This super blue moon is also special because it is exceptionally close to the Earth at 222,043 miles. The next time we’ll have a closer full supermoon is in November, 2025 at 221,817 miles from Earth, according to the Old Farmers Almanac.
The downside is it could be difficult to get a good look at the super blue moon tonight. Clouds, showers and local smoke are in the forecast in Kamloops and throughout the Okanagan.
If you're able to get photos of the super blue moon and want to share them, please send them to news@infonews.ca.
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