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VIEWER PHOTOS: Sept. 27 Supermoon

Posted at 1:39 PM, Sep 28, 2015
and last updated 2015-09-28 13:39:53-04

If you looked up to the sky Sunday night, you likely witnessed history. 

Sunday night there was a Super Harvest Moon total lunar eclipse and it's a lunar event you won't see again until 2033.

Check out viewer photos of the Supermoon in the media player above.

 

What is a supermoon?

As the moon orbits around the Earth, its distance from our planet varies by roughly 30,000 miles.

When a full moon occurs at the perigree, or closest point to Earth, we call it a supermoon.

What is the Harvest Moon?

The Harvest Moon is the full moon closest to the autumnal equinox, or the first day of fall and the day of the year when the amount of day and night are approximately equal in length.

The Harvest Moon got its name because it also occurred around the same time farmers were busy harvesting their crops before the cold and frost of winter arrive.

The full moon allowed farmers and workers to gather crops well after sunset thanks to the light provided by the moon.

What is a total lunar eclipse?

A total lunar eclipse occurs when the moon passes directly behind the Earth and into its shadow.

The Sun, Earth and moon must all be aligned for this to occur.

Lunar eclipses typically last for a few hours.

What is a lunar tetrad?

A lunar tetrad is a series of four total lunar eclipses in a row with no partial lunar eclipses in between. Each of those total lunar eclipses is separated by six other full moons.

These lunar tetrads are fairly rare events with the next one occurring in 2032-2033.