Take a look up to the heavens starting on Sunday night and you’ll see a bright supermoon in the sky over Beaufort. March’s full moon marks the second supermoon of 2020. The Super Worm Moon is set to light up the night sky over Beaufort starting tonight, visible to skywatchers provided the weather remains clear.
The last full moon of winter will reach peak fullness at 1:48pm EDT on Monday, March 9, but will appear full from Sunday through Tuesday night. It will look 98% full on Sunday night, 100% full on Monday night and 100% full on Tuesday night.
Also, this full moon will be the second closest of all of the full moons in 2020, so it will also be one of the brightest of the year.
According to the Farmers’ Almanac, northeastern Native American tribes referred to the March full moon as the Worm Moon because of the fact that earthworms and grubs tend to emerge from their winter dormancy at this time of year, and birds come feeding aplenty, making it a sure sign of spring.
The Worm Moon is the most widely-used nickname for March’s full moon, but it has also been known as Crow Moon, Full Sap Moon and Lenten Moon.
What’s a supermoon?
A supermoon is a full moon that occurs when the moon is at the closest point to earth in its orbit. Since it is closer, it’s much brighter then a ‘regular’ full moon, thus giving it the ‘super’ name.
The next full moon, another supermoon, will occur on April 7th. April’s is called the Pink Moon. There will be one more additional supermoon in 2020 coming in May.
Additionally, throughout the month of March, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are all visible before dawn, NASA said. Just wake up a little early and look toward the east to catch a glimpse of the three planets.
