 The weather may not have been in favour of British skygazers last night, but across the globe photographers captured dazzling pictures of the Sturgeon full moon. The lunar spectacle is the first of two supermoons this month. Supermoons occur when a full moon coincides with lunar perigee, the point at which the Moon is closest to Earth. The Moon's orbit is elliptical, meaning it isn't always the same distance from the planet. Last night the Moon was around 222,000 miles away. At its furthest point, lunar apogee, the distance is around 252,000 miles. Supermoons can appear up to 14% bigger and 30% brighter than a full moon at its further point. Whether a full moon is a supermoon or not is up for debate – last month's Buck full moon was not classified a supermoon by the Royal Greenwich Observatory, but was by Nasa. There is more consensus this month however, and a second will follow on August 31. Phases of the Moon New moon Waxing crescent moon First quarter moon Waxing gibbous moon Full moon Waning gibbous moon Last quarter moon Waning crescent moon The naming of full moons is traditionally linked to Native American history. The Sturgeon full moon is named after the time during which people in some regions of North America typically caught large numbers of the famous fish, according to the Old Farmer's Almanac. August's second supermoon will also be a blue moon – the name given when a second full moon occurs in one calendar month. A plane flies in front of the supermoon over Istanbul (Picture: Anadolu/Getty) The silver supermoon meets the Golden Arches (Picture: AFP/Getty) The Sturgeon full moon rises behind Istanbul's Camlica Mosque (Picture: Chris McGrath/Getty) The Sturgeon supermoon over Kuwait City (Picture: AFP/Getty) The full moon rises behind the ancient temple of Poseidon earlier in the day (Picture: John Liakos/Intime/A){kind=link}
NEWS… BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
The weather may not have been in favour of British skygazers last night, but across the globe photographers captured dazzling pictures of the Sturgeon full moon.
The lunar spectacle is the first of two supermoons this month.
Supermoons occur when a full moon coincides with lunar perigee, the point at which the Moon is closest to Earth.
The Moon’s orbit is elliptical, meaning it isn’t always the same distance from the planet. Last night the Moon was around 222,000 miles away. At its furthest point, lunar apogee, the distance is around 252,000 miles.