Super Snow Moon in India on 19 Feb: When and where to watch the lunar spectacle

February’s only full moon is a special one. It will brighten the night sky as the biggest supermoon this year. Just a month after a rare lunar phenomenon — the **Super Wolf Blood Moon** — the **supermoon** on 19 February brings the moon to its closest distance from Earth through the year.

What is the Super moon?

The moon will appear bigger (not by that much…roughly 5 to 6 percent more than the full moons we’re familiar with). The point at which the supermoon is ’technically’ at its largest lasts only a moment in time. This supermoon ‘peak’ will be at 9.24 pm IST (10.54 am ET), and visible from India at that time.

a.k.a. The Snow Moon

February’s full moon is also called the “snow moon” because it comes at a time of heavy snowfall in the west, The Old Farmer’s Almanac says. Today’s lunar spectacle also goes by some other names — bone moon and hunger moon — since winter was once a time where food is relatively harder to come by. This year’s supermoon is very different from 2018, when there was no full moon in the month of February at all. That lunar event has a name of its own — the Black Moon, which is also rare and happens only once every 19 years.

When to watch the Super Snow moon

The Supermoon will be visible at its peak at 9.24 pm IST from anywhere in India. However, starting 6.30 pm IST today, when the moon rises above the horizon, the moon will grow marginally in size till it peaks 3 hours later. The moon will also be close to its brightest intensity during the Supermoon (that’s provided clouds and pollution don’t get in the way where you live). [caption id=“attachment_6114181” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”] How the supermoon, full moon and micromoon differ in size.[/caption]

Where to watch

The super snow moon will be visible in the night sky from anywhere in India, provided you don’t have anything blocking your view of the eastern horizon (pick a place or rooftop where you can see the northeast to southeast horizon without anything to block your view).

How to watch

There’s no good or bad way to watch a full moon, so pick a comfortable spot, chair or mat and look in the right direction. Interestingly, one of the modern legends science is yet to unravel is what effects a full moon has on people and animals. Centuries ago, before artificial lighting became popular, the full moon reportedly caused sleep deprivation due to insomnia. But modern lighting has canceled out those effects, and moonlight doesn’t affect us as much anymore. Still, the moon at its farthest or closest is said to have different effects than other days on how our bodies function. So if you feel a little funny, exceptionally powerful or are transforming into a mythical creature of some kind, get help — immediately! But once you’re feeling yourself again, do tell us what your experience of the Super Snow moon was like. [caption id=“attachment_6114521” align=“alignnone” width=“1333”] The term “supermoon” was coined by astrologer Richard Nolle.[/caption]