Although there are usually understandable reasons for this, it seems that astronomers made sure to give every special moon phase a really cool sounding name.
For instance, if you were watching the skies in January, you may have caught sight of the Super Wolf Blood Moon Eclipse, which sounds like the name of the band we tried to start in high school.
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And while it’s not quite as over the top as that example, the upcoming New Black Supermoon seems to combine a lot of words that almost instinctively catch our interest.
But what exactly is it?
First off, let’s go over what makes a supermoon so super.
According to Space.com , when a moon reaches its closest point to the earth–which is called a perigee–it shows up as both slightly larger and slightly brighter than it otherwise would during a full moon.
The one coming on August 30 is also a “black moon,” which has more to do with the fact that it’s the second new moon in a single calendar month than its color.
But while this is hardly the only time of year that the moon appears larger than usual, that’s not the only way this one will be different.
As Jamie Carter wrote for Forbes , the sun and the moon have the greatest influence on the earth’s tides when they’re both on the same side of it.
As this will be happening, it will cause a greater range between low and high tides and bring about massive perigean spring tides, which are also known as “king tides.”
The moon also has a peculiar effect on the Severn River in the U.K. when it gets into this position.
As Carter wrote, this effect is called a tidal bore and it refers to a situation when a wave travels upriver against the current. Right around the time the supermoon appears, this wave will reach about 33 feet in height.
Due to its size and unusual direction, these tidal bores can often cause flooding in parts of Gloucestershire, England.
This New Black Supermoon is expected to occur at 11:37 am EST.
If you’re out looking for it and can’t get a glimpse of it, that’s likely because it’s closer to the Eastern Hemisphere when it appears than the Western Hemisphere.
Even if you don’t see it, however, you may see the effects it has if you’re at the beach.
h/t: Forbes
