Supermoon 2022: The biggest and the brightest Moon of the year will illuminate the night skies tonight. The Moon will be a full Moon as well as a supermoon. This Moon is known as the Buck Supermoon. Sometimes, it is also called the Thunder Moon, Hay Moon or Mead Moon. 


At 9:00 am UTC on July 13 (2:30 pm IST), the Moon came near its closest approach to Earth. The Moon will officially turn full at 2:38 pm UTC on July 13 (12:08 am IST on July 14). In India, the supermoon will be visible after midnight.


According to NASA, the Moon will appear full for about three days till Friday. 


A supermoon is a full Moon that occurs when the Moon is at the perigee, the point closest to Earth in its orbit. Therefore, a supermoon always appears slightly brighter and larger than a normal full Moon. 


How To Watch The July Buck Supermoon Online


The supermoon to appear tonight is the third of the four supermoons for 2022. 


People worldwide can watch the July Buck Supermoon live online. The astronomical phenomenon will be broadcast from Rome. 


The Virtual Telescope Project will start livestreaming the July Buck Supermoon on July 14 at 12:30 am IST.


One can watch the livestream on the official website or YouTube channel of the Virtual Telescope Project.



Gialunca Masi, an Italian astrophysicist who founded the Virtual Telescope Project, said in a statement that on July 13 (July 14 in India), the sky will show the world the closest full Moon of the year. 


Astronomy enthusiasts can also watch the July Buck Supermoon using binoculars or a telescope.


Why The July Full Moon Is Known As The Buck Moon


In the 1930s, the Maine Farmer's Almanac, an annual American periodical, started publishing Native American names for full Moons. The Algonquin tribes of what is now the northeastern United States called the July full Moon the Buck Moon. 


During this time of the year, the new antlers of buck deer push out of their foreheads. This is the reason why early native American tribes called the July full Moon the Buck Moon. 


Due to the early summer's frequent thunderstorms, early Native Americans also called the July full Moon the Thunder Moon.


The July full Moon is also known as Salmon Moon or Raspberry Moon.


The full Moon was known as the Claiming Moon, Wyrt Moon, Herb Moon, and Mead Moon in Celtic, which refers to the languages and cultures of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, the Isle of Man, and Brittany. The names indicate that July is the time to gather herbs to dry and use as spices and remedies.


Since the hay harvest is made in July, the Anglo-Saxons called the full Moon occurring at this time of the year the Hay Moon.


Mead is created by fermenting honey mixed with water, sometimes adding fruits, spices, or grains, which are harvested in July. Hence, Europeans sometimes refer to the July full Moon as the Mead Moon. 


More About The Buck Supermoon


The July full Moon will be a supermoon because the peak of the full Moon is less than 10 hours after the Moon was closest to Earth in its orbit.


In 1979, American astrologer Richard Nolle coined the term "supermoon" to refer to either a new or full Moon that occurs when the Moon is within 90 per cent of its perigee. 


People on Earth cannot see new supermoons, unless the Moon passes in front of the Sun and causes an eclipse. Therefore, full supermoons, which are the brightest and biggest full moons of the year, have caught people's attention. 


Supermoons appear 14 per cent larger and 30 per cent brighter than full Moons near the farthest distance from Earth, or apogee. The Full moons occurring at apogee are referred to as micromoons or minimoons. 


A supermoon is around seven per cent larger and 15 per cent brighter than a standard full Moon.


The first supermoon of the year took place on January 2. It was a super new Moon. The next super new Moon of the year will occur in December. 


The super full Moon which occurred on June 14 was the second supermoon of the year.