                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                               2024 August 20
   A large and orange-tinted moon is pictured rising beyond the pillars of
    an ancient structure. The foreground is dark and the night sky behind
     the Moon appear blue. Please see the explanation for more detailed
                                information.

                   Supermoon Beyond the Temple of Poseidon
                      Image Credit: Alexandros Maragos

   Explanation: A supermoon occurred yesterday. And tonight's moon should
   also look impressive. Supermoons appear slightly larger and brighter
   than most full moons because they reach their full phase when slightly
   nearer to the Earth -- closer than 90 percent of all full moons. This
   supermoon was also a blue moon given the definition that it is the
   third of four full moons occurring during a single season. Blue moons
   are not usually blue, and a different definition holds that a blue moon
   is the second full moon that occurs during a single month. The featured
   image captured the blue supermoon right near its peak size yesterday as
   it was rising beyond the Temple of Poseidon in Greece. This supermoon
   is particularly unusual in that it is the first of four successive
   supermoons, the next three occurring in September, October, and
   November.

                     Tomorrow's picture: high energy sky
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

