Mark Your Calendars: This Thursday Will Be Your Last Chance to View a Supermoon in 2022

Madeline Buiano
·1 min read
supermoon surrounded by clouds
supermoon surrounded by clouds

Getty / Mimi Ditchie Photography

Three supermoons have taken over the night sky so far this year, but if you haven't yet had the chance to view the celestial event, your last opportunity to do so comes in just two days. On Thursday, August 11, the final supermoon of 2022—the Sturgeon Moon—will reach its peak around 9:36 p.m, according to a report by LiveScience.

While it will shine brightest on Thursday, the full moon will also be visible on Wednesday and Friday evening, too. But what, exactly, makes it a supermoon? The phenomenon happens when a full moon is at its closest point to Earth, also known as perigee, during its monthly orbit. According to LiveScience, the Sturgeon Moon will appear within 90 percent of perigee, making it a supermoon.

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The celestial event will be the fourth of its kind this year and the second-largest full moon of 2022. In May we saw the Flower Moon, followed by June's Strawberry Moon. During July, the Buck Moon brightened the night sky as the largest supermoon of the year, orbiting closer to Earth than any other full moon or 2022. At its nearest point, the natural satellite was about about 222,089 miles from our planet.

Named after a prehistoric-looking fish that has been traced back to 136 million years ago, the Sturgeon moon gets its moniker from The Old Farmer's Almanac. The site has been naming full moons for decades—and most titles come from Native American, Colonial American, and European sources. According to its website, August's supermoon is also referred to as the Flying Moon, Corn Moon, Ricing moon, and other nicknames.