A very rare supermoon followed by an amazing star cluster rising over Crete will be a spectacle for stargazers on October 17, 18, and 19. Known as a Hunter’s Supermoon, the event will be punctuated by a meeting with the Pleiades star cluster in one of the universe’s most spellbinding spectacles.
This Hunter’s Supermoon will outshine even this Summer’s spectacular lunar event with 100% illumination and a backdrop of Pleiades. This month’s event brings the moon closer to Earth than at any other time. The Hunter’s Supermoon will appear about 30 times larger than an ordinary full moon. The image below of the Hunter’s Supermoon is from NASA.
The current distance between Greece and the moon is just over 363,818 km (226,067 mi.). The reason for this is that the moon orbits Earth in an elliptical, slightly egg-shaped orbit, so it’s closer to Earth at times than at other times.
Just a couple of nights from now, another fascinating astrological display will be the dwaning supermoon drifting through the southern portion of the Pleiades star cluster. This fantastic star cluster is visible to the naked eye, and unbelievably bright through binoculars.
In the South of Crete, at remote places, these supermoon events will be truly awe-inspiring due to the lack of Earthly light from towns and cities. The moon over the Libyan Sea at places like Itanos, Goudouras, at the end of Agiofarago Gorge, and in the Far West of the Island will appear close enough to reach out and touch. The video above, a timelapse at Agioferago several years ago, gives you some idea how unbelievable these events will be. Photographers should be streaming to Crete’s south coast as I type this. I may head out myself for a beach on the Gulf of Mesara.
Photo credit: Feature image of Supermoon courtesy DaxtonPhotography
