11 pictures of last night's stunning Supermoon

Last night's Moon was 15 per cent larger and 30 per cent brighter than when it is at its smallest and dimmest

Stargazers from around the globe came out in full force to witness the phenomenon (Alisha Aspeland/ Instagram )

The sky was illuminated last night by the first “Supermoon” of the year, the largest and brightest view of the Moon as it reached its closest point to the Earth, resulting in some stunning images of the phenomenon from stargazers.

The spectacle was seen all over the globe as the Moon slowly rose last night, 15 per cent larger and 30 per cent brighter than when it is at its smallest and dimmest.

Supermoons or “perigee-syzygy”, their astronomical title, occur when the moon is simultaneously at its closest possible point to the Earth as it orbits its elliptical (lemon-shaped) route and when it is also directly opposite the Sun, meaning it is fully illuminated.

Stargazers from around the globe came out in full force to witness the phenomenon and have taken pictures of the spectacular Supermoon. On Twitter and Instagram the hashtag #supermoon2015 was trending as people shared their images from around the world.

Here are the 11 best images taken of the Supermoon last night:

1)

A photo posted by Alisha Aspeland (@happypigs65) on Aug 29, 2015 at 7:37pm PDT

Supermoon rising over Englewood, Colorado, taken by Alisha Aspeland.

2)

A photo posted by Julia Nothing (@station__to__station) on Aug 29, 2015 at 11:46pm PDT

A shot of a blood-red Supermoon rising over Kiev.

3)

A photo posted by Kara Tinson (@kara.tinson) on Aug 29, 2015 at 10:34am PDT

Kara Tinson posted this image of the Supermoon on Instagram rising over the sea.

4)

A photo posted by Ashley (@findingashley333) on Aug 29, 2015 at 11:28pm PDT

A view of the Supermoon from Aurora, Colorado.

5)

A photo posted by Nam Ing (@naminou) on Aug 29, 2015 at 11:17pm PDT

The Supermoon rising over San Francisco, California taken by landscape photographer Nam Ing.

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8)

A view of the moon from Chorley, Lancashire.

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11)

A photo posted by @khrssdh on Aug 29, 2015 at 8:08pm PDT

The Supermoon seen near Essen, Germany.

The next event of this kind is expected on the 28 September and will be followed by a lunar eclipse. It is expected to be even closer than last night’s Supermoon.