Supermoon Shines Monday, but Will We See It?

There’s good news and bad news for stargazers and fans of celestial shows.

Monday night brings a supermoon, an event that always seems to capture attention and wonder. But with thunderstorms predicted overnight Monday, it’s not clear how super this supermoon will be for South Jersey stargazers.

So what is a supermoon? It happens when the moon approaches Earth at the closest point during a new or full moon. You might hear experts call it a “perigee full moon”—perigee is the monthly event when the moon reaches its closest point to Earth.

Put the close approach and the full or new moon together and you get a supermoon.

Supermoons are a photographer’s delight especially, and many have captured beautiful shots of a larger-than-normal looking moon over landmarks. NASA has a picture of the June supermoon rising behind the Washington Monument, plus a dramatic supermoon behind a home and behind the Lincoln Memorial.

There’s only one problem for South Jerseyans. We’re trading in the end of the stifling heat wave for thunderstorms, bringing some measure of relief and lower temperatures. There’s a 50 percent chance of thunderstorms Monday night, possibly obscuring the supermoon.

Just in case we get lucky and get a glimpse of the supermoon, it officially arrives Monday at 2:16 p.m., though the supermoon will be best viewed at night.

Where do you think the best place in Moorestown is to see the supermoon?