Tuesday (Feb. 19) Full Moon: Largest So-Called 'Super-Moon' of 2019

                                  
Comparison of a Lunar Perigee Full Moon, a so-called "Super-Moon," of 2011 March 19 and an average-sized Full Moon of 2010 December 20, both as viewed from Earth.
(Image Sources: Wikipedia.org, By Marcoaliaslama - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=14651085)

This month's Full Moon (Snow Moon), which occurs on Tuesday, February 19 at 10:53 a.m. EST / 15:53 UTC, will be the largest and closest Full Moon of 2019 (and, hence, considered by some a so-called "Super-Moon"), due to a Lunar Perigee (distance from Earth: 221,681 statute miles / 356,761 kilometers) on February 19 at 4:00 a.m. EST / 9:00 UTC.

Most Native Americans in the Northern Hemisphere referred to the February Full Moon as the Snow Moon for obvious reasons. Other Native American tribes have called the February Full Moon the Hunger Moon, due to the difficult hunting conditions during the harsh weather of the month.

While the January Full Moon (and for some tribes the December Full Moon) has been known by some tribes as the Wolf Moon, other tribes referred to the February Full Moon as the Wolf Moon. The Full Moon of February has also been known as the Racoon Moon and the Bare-Spots-on-the-Ground Moon.

In the Southern Hemisphere, the February / Mid-Summer Full Moon has been known as the Grain Moon, Sturgeon Moon, Red Moon, Wyrt Moon, Corn Moon, Dog Moon, and Barley Moon.

Once every 19 years (including February of last year), February has no Full Moon (then, both January and March of that year have a "Blue Moon," the second of two Full Moon phases in one calendar month). This is due to the fact that February has only 28 days (29 days once every four years during the Leap Year) while the time duration of the Moon's orbit around the Earth is even shorter: 27.32166 days.

The Full Moon is visible, weather-permitting, the night of Full Moon and the nights before and after the night of Full Moon, approximately local sunset to local sunrise.

More information: Link >>> https://earthsky.org/tonight/years-biggest-supermoon-on-february-19


Astronomical Calendar for 2019 February ---
Link >>> http://buhlplanetarium4.tripod.com/astrocalendar/2019.html#feb

 Related Blog Post ---

"Astro-Calendar: Jan. / Pix of NASA Fly-By of Ultima Thule." 2019 Jan. 2.

Link >>> https://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2019/01/astro-calendar-jan-nasa-flies-by-ultima.html

Source: Friends of the Zeiss.
              Friday, 2019 February 1.
              Update: Tuesday, 2019 February 19

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gaw

Glenn A. Walsh - Informal Science Educator & Communicator:
< http://buhlplanetarium2.tripod.com/weblog/spacewatchtower/gaw/ >
Electronic Mail: < gawalsh@planetarium.cc >
Project Director, Friends of the Zeiss: < http://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/fotz/ >
SpaceWatchtower Editor / Author: < http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/ >
Formerly Astronomical Observatory Coordinator & Planetarium Lecturer, original Buhl Planetarium & Institute of Popular Science (a.k.a. Buhl Science Center), Pittsburgh's science & technology museum from 1939 to 1991.
Formerly Trustee of the Andrew Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall, Pittsburgh suburb of Carnegie, Pennsylvania.
Author of History Web Sites on the Internet --
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  < http://www.planetarium.cc >
* Adler Planetarium, Chicago:
  < http://adlerplanetarium.tripod.com >
* Astronomer, Educator, Optician John A. Brashear:
  < http://johnbrashear.tripod.com >
* Andrew Carnegie & Carnegie Libraries:
  < http://www.andrewcarnegie.cc >