Astronomy enthusiasts will be in for a treat tonight with the appearance of an exceptionally bright Super Blue Moon on Qatar’s skies.

This will be a rare occasion when two Supermoons appear in the sky in the same month, something that will happen again only 14 years later, in 2037, said the Qatar Calendar House. The second full Supermoon of the month is usually referred to as ‘Blue Moon.’

مساء اليوم الأربعاء سيبدو بدر شهر #صفر مختلف عن البدر المعتاد، إذ سيظهر على هيئة ما يُعرف بـ #القمر_العملاق_الأزرق، لأنه سيكون أكبر حجمًا وأكثر إضاءة، إضافة إلى أنه البدر الثاني خلال شهر أغسطس، ويمكن الاستمتاع برؤية القمر العملاق في سماء #قطر من مساء اليوم وحتى قبل شروق شمس الغد pic.twitter.com/PENq93dDG6

— دار التقويم القطري (@qat_ch) August 30, 2023

Wednesday’s Blue Moon will also double up as a Supermoon, which is when the moon is the closest to earth. In this case, the moon will be just 357,344km away from the centre of the planet.

Hence the moon will appear to be 14% larger than its usual size and 30% more luminous than normal.

While the first Supermoon appeared in Qatar’s skies on August 1, the second one will be visible tonight.

The last time two Supermoons appeared in the same month was in 2018. While 2023’s first Supermoon appeared in July, the last is expected to appear in September.

In addition to the Blue Moon, Wednesday will also witness the presence of the ringed planet Saturn. Keen observers will be able to spot Saturn positioned about five degrees to the upper right of the moon.

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