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[Music]

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the super moon of may 2012

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presented by science at nasa

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the full moon has a reputation for

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trouble

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it raises high tides it makes dogs howl

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it wakes you up in the middle of the

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night with beams of moonlight stealing

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through the drapes

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if a moonbeam wakes you up on the night

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of may 5th 2012 you might want to get

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out of bed and take a look

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this maze full moon is a super moon as

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much as 14 percent bigger and 30 percent

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brighter than other full moons of 2012

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the scientific term for the phenomenon

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is perigee moon

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full moons vary in size because of the

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oval shape of the moon's orbit

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the moon follows an elliptical path

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around earth with one side perigee about

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50 000 kilometers closer than the other

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apogee

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full moons that occur on the perigee

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side of the moon's orbit seem extra big

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and bright

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such is the case on may 5th at 11 34 pm

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eastern daylight time when the moon

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reaches perigee

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only one minute later the moon will line

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up with the earth and the sun to become

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gloriously full

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the timing is almost perfect

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okay the moon is 14 bigger than usual

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but can you really tell the difference

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it's tricky

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there are no rulers floating in the sky

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to measure lunar diameters hanging high

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overhead with no reference points to

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provide a sense of scale one full moon

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can seem much like any other

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the best time to look is when the moon

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is near the horizon

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for reasons not fully understood by

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astronomers or psychologists low-hanging

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moons look unnaturally large when they

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beam through trees buildings and other

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foreground objects

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on may 5th this moon illusion will

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amplify a full moon that's extra big to

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begin with

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the swollen orb rising in the east at

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sunset will seem super indeed

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folklore holds that all kinds of wacky

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things happen under the light of a full

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moon

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supposedly hospital admissions increase

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the crime rate ticks upward and people

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behave strangely

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the idea that the full moon causes

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mental disorders was widespread in the

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middle ages

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even the word lunacy meaning insanity

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comes from the latin word for moon

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the majority of modern studies however

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show no correlation between the phase of

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the moon and the incidence of crime

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sickness or human behavior

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the truth is the moon is less

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influential than folklore would have us

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believe

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it's true that a perigee full moon

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brings with it extra high perigee and

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tides but according to the national

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oceanic and atmospheric administration

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this is nothing to worry about

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in most places lunar gravity at perigee

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pulls tidewaters only a few centimeters

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an inch or so higher than usual

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local geography can amplify the effect

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to about 15 centimeters six inches

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not exactly a great flood

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super perigee moons are actually fairly

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common the moon becomes full within a

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few hours of its closest approach to

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earth about once a year on average

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the last such occurrence occurred on

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march 19 2011 producing a full moon that

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was almost 400 kilometers closer than

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this one

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as usual no trouble was reported

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that is unless you count a midnight

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awakening as trouble

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if so close the drapes on may 5th

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otherwise enjoy the super moonlight