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Starting Thursday evening, a brilliant supermoon will be visible in the sky.

Supermoons occur when a full moon reaches perigee, or the nearest point to Earth on its elliptical orbit around our planet.

They can appear as much as 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than the faintest moon of the year, 

The moon will begin to appear full Thursday evening, and reach the peak of its full phase around 6 a.m. ET Friday.

Since it's occurring close to this year's autumnal equinox on Sept. 23, it's also known as a harvest moon. That's because historically farmers harvesting their summer-grown crops were helped by the bright moonlight shining shortly after sunset, 

Harvest moons typically take place in September, though they can also happen in October depending on the lunar calendar.

This week will be your last chance to see a supermoon this year, 

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A supermoon occurs when the moon is closest to Earth along its elliptical orbit, which means it can appear larger and brighter to viewers

The last one of the year will be visible Thursday and Friday.

A supermoon occurs when the moon is closest to Earth along its elliptical orbit, which means it can appear larger and brighter to viewers. The last one of the year will be visible Thursday and Friday.


This week's harvest moon will be the last supermoon of the year

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