Warning issued over super supermoon

WAIT for the moon tonight – it's going to rise at 7.24pm and is billed as a super supermoon, because it will appear up to 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter.

Nasa says the last super supermoon was in 1948; the next one will be in 2034.

The NSRI has issued a warning, saying the supermoon spring tide will have a greater effect on the coastline.

The South African Weather Service predicts a beautiful day for Cape Town today, with clear skies and a high of 25ºC – perfect for moon watching.

The best time to experience the supermoon is when it's rising on the horizon.

Nasa says the moon's orbit around Earth is slightly oval, so sometimes it's closer and sometimes it’s farther away.

When the moon is full as it makes its closest pass to Earth, it is known as a supermoon.

At perigee, the point at which the moon is closest to Earth, the moon can be as much as 14 percent closer to Earth than at apogee, when the moon is farthest from our planet.

The full moon appears that much larger in diameter and because it is larger shines 30 percent more moonlight on to the Earth.

NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon said the supermoon would have a marginally greater effect on the spring high and low tides.

High tide will be higher and low tide lower, so Lambinon has urged people to be cautious because rip currents will be stronger than the normal spring tide effects.

The spring tide will last until at least Friday.

The next supermoon is on December 14.

Nasa’s senior photographer, Bill Ingalls, has a handy tip for photographing the moon tonight.

“Don’t make the mistake of photographing it by itself with no reference to anything. Tie it to a land object."

lynette.johns@inl.co.za