Community Corner

Supermoon 2012: Biggest Full Moon of the Year to Light up Sky on May 5

The moon will appear bigger and brighter Saturday night as the moon's orbit reaches its closest point to the Earth.

The moon will look bigger and brighter Saturday night during this year's "supermoon."

This month's full moon will take place as the moon reaches perigee -- its closest orbit point to Earth -- resulting in a bigger and brighter appearing moon. This month's perigee will also be the closest this year causing the full moon to appear 16 percent brighter than usual.  According to Discovery.com, the moon will officially become full on Saturday, May 5, at 11:35 p.m.

In a , local weather expert Steve Brueck wrote, "The best time to get the full effect of the size will be during moonrise and moonset, and for us here in Atlanta, the moon will rise around 8:14 p.m. on the 5th and set at 6:55 a.m. on the morning of the 6th."

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Space.com recommends looking for the moon when it is close to the horizon.

"There, you can catch a view of the moon behind buildings or trees, an effect which produces an optical illusion, making the moon seem even larger than it really is," Space.com staff reported.

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In Dacula, moon-watching could be impeded by isolated thunderstorms. The Daculaweather.com forecast calls for mostly cloudy skies with a chance of showers and thunderstorms Saturday evening.

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