Superluna: what is the "Snow Moon" that will be seen on Tuesday (and why it will be so impressive)

An extraordinary supermoon will illuminate the night sky on Tuesday.

It is the largest and brightest full moon to be seen this year.

This will be possible thanks to a particularity of the translation movement of our satellite around the Earth.

The orbit of the Moon around the planet is slightly elliptical.

This means that in some sections of its route, our satellite is closer to Earth, a stretch that is known as "perigee" (the sections in which it is further away are called "apogee").

If the moon reaches the full moon phase when it is in full perigee, it is up to 14% larger, fuller and brighter than a normal full moon.

It is in this case when we observe a "supermoon," explains NASA on its website, and some are closer to Earth than others.

But why is the supermoon on Tuesday called "Snow Moon"?

Second supermoon
"Snow moon" is the name given by some Native American tribes (who had a name for each full moon of the year) to the full moon of February because this is the month in which the heaviest snowfalls in the hemisphere usually fall. north.

The "Snow Moon" is the second supermoon of the year. There was one on January 21 and the last will occur on March 21.

But this Tuesday will be the closest to the Earth of three and can be seen in all its glory for six hours, according to NASA.

Astronomers take advantage of the event as an opportunity to motivate people to go out and look up at the sky.