Supermoon eclipse excites stargazers near and far

Rare astronomical event occurred for first time in 33 years

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People across the world lined observatories, open fields, parks and even their own backyards last Sunday to see a rare astronomical event — a so-called supermoon and a lunar eclipse, coinciding together, for the first time in 33 years.

A supermoon occurs when the moon is at its closest distance to the Earth during its elliptical orbit, making it appear larger than usual.

A lunar eclipse happens only when the Earth, moon and sun are aligned almost perfectly, and the Earth casts its shadow onto the moon.

The two events combined — for the first time since 1982 — give the moon a reddish hue. 

Among the stargazers who witnessed the supermoon eclipse were members of the Amateur Observers’ Society of New York. “It’s been such a long time since we’ve been able to see a lunar eclipse,” said President Susan Rose, who has lived in East Meadow for 20 years. “The anticipation of ‘Where are we going see it? When are we going see it?’ was exciting. Everyone was biting their fingernails.”

Though the club meets often to observe astronomical events, Rose said they agreed to stay apart on Sunday night, and watch the supermoon eclipse however they pleased. “The nice thing about a lunar eclipse is you can see it from your own backyard,” she said. “It was great because all of our members saw it.”

Those members included transplanted New Yorkers who now live out of state, or even overseas. Rose said one member from Hamburg, Germany even got a glimpse of the supermoon.

She said group members are connected through an email network, and each shared their own experiences and photos immediately after. “The messages were just flying all over,” she said.

The Amateur Observers’ Society features about 300 members, Rose said. They meet on the first Sunday of every month — including this Sunday — at Hofstra University. The group also gives presentations at the East Meadow Public Library, with its next one coming Oct. 17.

While last weekend’s event was rare, Rose said an even rarer occurrence will happen next May, when Mercury makes it path across the face of the sun, making it visible from Earth.

But just two days after the supermoon, Rose was still reveling in excitement. “I just sat out on my back deck and watched the whole thing,” she said. “And it was wonderful.”

To learn more about the Amateur Observers’ Society, visit aosny.org.