Supermoon: In a treat for sky gazers and space enthusiasts in India, a Super Blue Moon (Supermoon) phenomenon was witnessed across the country on Wednesday.
People witnessed the breathtaking view of the Moon in Uttar Pradesh's Lucknow, Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir, and Kolkata.
The supermoon, second in the month of August this year, was also seen across the world.
Skywatchers across the globe have been gearing up for a rare celestial event called the 'Blue Moon'.
The event happens when a full moon coincides with a blue moon. The Super Blue Moon is the convergence of three lunar occurrences - a full Moon, a Supermoon, and a blue Moon. Also, it is even more special with the Moon approaching the planet Saturn.
This year (2023), there have been four occasions when Supermoon was visible across the world.
A supermoon exceeds the disk size of an average-sized Moon by up to 8 per cent and the brightness of an average-sized full Moon by some 16 per cent.
On Wednesday, August 30, the full Moon peaked at 9.36 pm ET (7.06 am IST on August 31), as per the Old Farmer's Almanac.
NASA reports that Blue Moons are of two kinds --monthly and seasonal. The monthly Blue Moon is the second Full Moon in a calendar month with two Full Moons. The seasonal Blue Moon is the third Full Moon of an astronomical season that has four Full Moons.
Contrary to its name, a Blue Moon has nothing to do with the Moon having a blue hue. However, very rarely there are actual blue-tinted Moons due to particles thrown into the atmosphere by natural catastrophes, the US space agency said.
With inputs from agencies
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