Lunar perigee will not affect Earth, academician

On March 19, a full perigee Moon of rare size will rise in the east at sunset. The last full Moon so big and close to the Earth occurred in March of 1992. Many scientists say perigee Moons can trigger natural disasters. Academician Ion Dediu believes the lunar perigee should not represent a reason for concern as it does not happen for the first time and cannot have a negative impact on the state of the people and on the Earth, Info-Prim Neo reports. “There are many mixed opinions about the effects of the moon’s gravitational pull on the Earth. It is well established that the moon’s orbit impacts the rise and fall of the ocean’s tides, but it is not known if there any other effects, beyond this correlation,” the academician said, adding that the people can be more resistant to natural hazards if they are informed beforehand and know more about such events. Full Moons vary in size because of the oval shape of the Moon's orbit. It is an ellipse with one side (perigee) about 50,000 km closer to the Earth than the other (apogee). Nearby perigee Moons are about 14% bigger and 30% brighter than lesser Moons that occur on the apogee side of the Moon's orbit. On March 19, the Moon will be only 365,578 kilometers from the Earth.