A Pink Supermoon Will Be Visible in the Sky This April

Nashia Baker
·2 min read

If you consider yourself a space fanatic, you're in for a special treat in the beginning of next month. According to Mental Floss, a pink supermoon is set to take over the night's sky on April 7. This lunar perigee will appear at 2:08 p.m. eastern time, so set your timer now if you want to take in the out-of-this-world attraction, EarthSky reports. At 10:35 p.m. eastern time, you will be able to see the full moon at its peak.

Getty / Jamie Cooper

This phenomenon will occur as the biggest supermoon of 2020 since it will be the closest full moon to Earth during its monthly orbit. According to The Old Farmer's Almanac, this supermoon adopted its "pink moon" nickname from the Phlox subulate, a North American flower meaning moss pink. This wild bloom is known to flourish each April. Another moniker for the moon? It's also referred to as the paschal moon, which relates to the meaning of Easter.

Related: A Total Solar Eclipse Is Happening Next Month—Here's Where You Can See It

This isn't the only notable moon news to take over 2020, though. Back in February, a mini-moon locked into Earth's orbit, according to experts. "BIG NEWS," tweeted Kacper Wierzchos, a researcher with the Catalina Sky Survey at the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Lab. "Earth has a new temporarily captured object/Possible mini-moon called 2020 CD3. On the night of February 15, my Catalina Sky Survey teammate Teddy Pruyne and I found a 20th magnitude object."

The International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center (IAU) confirmed the mini-moon stating that studies "indicate that this object is temporarily bound to Earth." Also, "No evidence of perturbations due to solar radiation pressure is seen, and no link to a known artificial object has been found. Further observations and dynamical studies are strongly encouraged," the organization shared.