It’s something that happens only once every couple of decades: a full moon on Friday the 13th.
What makes this one particularly special, however, is that it will be smaller than the average full moon, a whole 14 percent smaller, to be exact, making it a ‘micromoon’.
Speaking to the Daily Express, Maine Farmers’ Almanac astronomer Joe Rao said the reduced size is due to the position of the moon when it peaks.
He said: “To add to this Full Moon ‘madness’, this upcoming Full Moon very nearly coincides with apogee – that point in its orbit which places it at its greatest distance from the Earth: 252,100 miles away.
“Remember last February, when the Full Moon coincided with perigee, its closest point to Earth?
“The Moon was more than 30,000 miles closer and was accordingly branded a ‘Supermoon’.”
And what’s more, depending on where you live, the rare ‘micromoon’ could be extra spooky this year as it is set to appear on Friday 13.
A full moon on Friday 13 is extremely rare. The last one was almost 20 years ago, back in 2000 and we are not expected to see another one until 2049.
