[imagesource: Reuters]

The term ‘supermoon’ is more descriptive than it is scientific.

It was first coined by an astrologer back in the late 1970s to describe – wait for it- a very large moon.

They tend to happen, on average, between four to six times a year.

The first supermoon of 2020 was a Super Worm Moon – not the most enticing of names, but it was pretty cool nonetheless.

There was one more after that, and now we’ve reached the third and final supermoon of the year: the Flower Moon.

Here’s HowStuffWorks with how supermoons work:

Supermoons happen because the moon doesn’t orbit the earth in a perfect circle, but rather in an elliptical path. That means its distance from the Earth can vary in the course of a month, from 252,000 miles at its farthest point, which is called the apogee, to roughly 225,800 miles at its closest approach, which is called the perigee.

But a few times a year, the sun, moon and Earth line up just right, so that a perigee coincides with the most dramatic phases of the moon — the new moon, when the orb is just a sliver — or the full moon. That’s when we notice because the moon can appear to be slightly bigger and significantly brighter than normal

Now you know.

On to the BBC, who gathered together some of the best photos of the moon from around the world:

Photo: REUTERS

Photo: EPA

Photo: PA Media

Photo: REUTERS

Photo: AFP

Same time next year, I guess.

You can find more images of the latest supermoon here, and here.

If you’re bored and want to take up stargazing, here’s a guide.

[sources:howstuffworks&bbc]