Supermoon to brighten UK skies tonight

The only supermoon of 2017 will rise on Sunday night.

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A supermoon is when the full moon reaches its closest approach to Earth called 'perigee,' which means the moon will appear bigger and brighter.

It's difficult to tell the size difference from your naked eye but if you catch the moon just as it rises from the horizon it appears very large due to an illusion.

Robert Massey, of the Royal Astronomical Society, told the BBC that it will appear brightest at midnight, when it is at its highest point above the horizon.

He said: "You won't necessarily think that it's huge. It will appear a bit bigger than usual, but don't expect it to look five times bigger."

Speaking to PA, Tom Kerss, an astronomer at Royal Observatory Greenwich, said: ""he 'moon illusion' can be a dramatic effect, and with the moon rising so early, there will be ample opportunities to see its apparently huge face juxtaposed with the eastern skyline."