Reaching for the moon is super idea in July

July skies bring us an amazing sight – the super thunder moon!

Here we have the largest and brightest of the full moons of all of 2022, with a spectacular view Wednesday evening.

This megasize moon will rise in the southeastern sky at 8:13 p.m. Arizona time and offer up some amazing views of our nearest celestial neighbor.

The moon will be some 221,935 miles from us and comes at a time within 9 hours of the position we call perigee.

This is a great time to observe the moon with the naked eye, a pair of binoculars or a telescope. Here is a map of the moon to help you identify some of the basic features on the surface.

A super moon is one that comes closer to Earth than 223,000 miles!

Here are the other super moons in 2022:

May 16 – 225,015 miles from Earth.

June 14 – 222,238 miles from Earth.

For those who would like a more detailed map of the moon, you can download a nice map here.

By the way, the term super moon is not an astronomical term; it was first used by astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979.

The true astronomical tern for this type of close moon is perigean full moon.

The month of July also offer us a time to reflect on the Apollo 11 landing on the moon on July 20, 1969.

The Apollo 11 mission is a most amazing event in history. Learn so much more about this mission and some amazing trivia from this historic event here and here.

At present there are some interesting spacecraft on the way to the moon and orbiting the moon.

Get set for more data and great images from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, based in Arizona and the Capstone spacecraft on its way to test out a new lunar orbit for the soon-to-be-built Lunar Gateway Space Station.

More information on the spacecraft here and here.

China has some interesting missions to the moon.

The moon is a most interesting place for future landings and the development of a true moon base.

Hope that you and your family will enjoy the wonders of the moon, as we experience the July super thunder moon this week.

Clear skies!

To print your own monthly star chart, click here.

To view satellites/dates/times of passage, click here.

Listen to the Dr. Sky Show on KTAR News 92.3 FM every Saturday at 3 a.m.

The Dr. Sky Podcast is found here.