The year's biggest supermoon appears on the last full moon of 2017 – don't miss it

By / MOOK Scenic Spots Editorial Team, compiled and reported

The stunning astronomical phenomenon "supermoon" will make an appearance soon, and it is also the largest full moon of the year. The moon is the closest and easiest celestial body to observe. This year, it reaches the full moon position at 23:47 on December 3, making the full moon visible in Taiwan the largest of 2017—about the difference between a 10-dollar and a 50-dollar coin.

Since the moon orbits the Earth in an elliptical path, its distance from our planet constantly changes. When a full moon occurs while the moon is closer to Earth, the full moon appears larger. On December 3, the moon rises at 16:58 from the northeast, reaches full moon at 23:47, and does not set until 5:31 the next morning from the northwest. No tools are needed to admire the biggest full moon—it can be enjoyed with the naked eye—but viewing it through a telescope reveals more lunar surface features.

Accompanying this year’s largest full moon is a very bright orange-red star—Aldebaran, the brightest star in the constellation Taurus—which makes for a particularly beautiful contrast with the full moon. The Taipei Astronomical Museum specially moved a large telescope to Tianmu Baseball Stadium from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. that evening, allowing city dwellers to observe the year’s biggest and most beautiful supermoon up close through a telescope.

Top 5 global moon-viewing spots handpicked – a famous Taiwanese attraction makes the list

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