New Delhi:
It was a full moon day on Friday, April 22, a day when a phenomenon called the ‘Mini Moon’ took place. A spectacular view of the moon was a treat for all those who witnessed the occurrence. This Mini Moon phenomenon will occur again only after 15 years. The moon became smaller in size and was farthest from the earth. Earlier, it was rumoured that the Moon will look pink in colour, but it was silvery pearl.
The moon was at apogee at 9:35 IST on Friday night. An apogee is the farthest point in Moon’s orbit around the earth. It is at a distance of around 4,06,350 km from the earth. The moon is about 3,84,000 km away from the earth if we talk about the average distance.
“When the full moon happens it will still be very close to its farthest point from the earth. So it will be smaller than an average full moon,” Debiprosad Duari, Director of M P Birla Planetarium, Kolkata, had said ahead of the celestial event.
Though, sky-gazers, were not able see the ‘Mini Moon’ phenomenon that occurred at 10:55 AM on Friday due to daylight. However, when they watched it at night, the ‘Mini Moon’ was only a shade lighter.
The ‘Mini Moon’ phenomenon will occur next time on December 10, 2030, Duari said. The colour of the Moon was silvery pearl and not any shade of pink or green as it was rumoured over the internet. The Mini Moon was 14 per cent smaller in size compared to supermoon, a phenomenon when the moon is nearest to the earth.
