‘Flower moon’ to arrive tonight, marking final supermoon of 2020

Sight will not happen again for almost a year

The final supermoon of the year is about to arrive, as the moon appears overnight into Thursday.

May's full moon is known as the "flower moon", since it coincides with the blooming of flowers.

And this month's supermoon will also mark the last time to see the sight until next year.

The celestial event is expected to be visible early on Thursday morning as well as after sunset as the moon rises in the south-east.

Other names for May's full moon include the hare moon, the corn planting moon, and the milk moon, according to Royal Observatory Greenwich.

Greg Brown, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory, said: "Technically the exact moment of full moon is 11.45am, however the moon will not be visible in the sky in the UK at that time."

But the Earth's natural satellite will still appear bigger than usual on Thursday morning, when it sets at around 5.42am in London, as well as on Thursday evening, when it rises at around 8.44pm.

He said: "Times for moonrise and set vary slightly across the UK, but not by more than about 10 minutes or so."

This full moon will also be a supermoon, meaning it will be about 6% larger than a typical full moon and around 14% bigger than a micromoon, which is when the moon is at its furthest point from Earth.

Dr Brown told PA: "The moon's orbit around the Earth is not entirely circular, instead a slightly flattened circle or ellipse.

"As such, it is sometimes closer to and sometimes further away from the Earth.

"While definitions vary, a supermoon typically occurs when a full moon coincides with the moon being within the closest 10% of its orbit."

Dr Brown also said this event would be the third and final supermoon of this year.

He told PA: "Because of how the dynamics of orbits work, these usually occur in runs of two or three with longer gaps of several months between each set of supermoons."

The next supermoon will be visible in April 2021.

Additional reporting by Press Association