Supermoon Photo Shots Over Belize

Sunday night Supermoon.

There was lots of hype about viewing the supermoon which was to appear during the nights of May 5th and 6th.  What is a supermoon?  A supermoon, also known as a "perigee moon" occurs when the moon's elliptical orbit is closest to the earth.  During this time the moon should appear both brighter and bigger. 

The term "supermoon" is not an astronomical one, but one that was originated in astrology.  The association of the Moon with both oceanic and crustal tides has led to claims that the supermoon phenomenon may be associated with increased risk of events such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

Saturday night the moon was about 221,802 miles from the earth which makes the moon about 15,300 miles closer than average, therefore making the moon seem about 14% brighter. The last supermoon was on March 19, 2011 and was about 240 miles closer to the earth than this year's.

 So Saturday night I decided I would try and get some photo shots of this supermoon phenomenon.  The sky was pretty clear with a few rolling clouds.  The clouds actually made for some nice pictures, but still not as clear as I would have liked for them to be.  The shots below I took as the clouds were rolling around.

After a few changes that my sweet husband made to my camera and some practicing during the day, I was ready to get my photo shots of the moon again on Sunday night.  The sky happened to be perfect for getting a clear shot of the moon Sunday night.  This is my Sunday night photo shot of the Supermoon.  Much better I think!!