Mid-Autumn Festival 2025 is brilliant with a super moon: The brightest full moon viewing occasion of the year

Why is this year's Mid-Autumn Moon special?

The term “supermoon” has no official scientific definition – it was coined by an astrologer and then used by the astronomical community to drum up interest.

Mid-Autumn Festival 2025 coincides with the first supermoon of autumn – creating the most beautiful moon-viewing moment of the year. (Source: Getty Images)

A supermoon occurs when a full moon coincides with the moon's closest approach to Earth in its elliptical orbit, known as perigee. At such times, the moon can appear up to 30% brighter and about 14% larger than a typical full moon, according to NASA.

The moon appears brighter during a "supermoon." (Source: NASA)

Therefore, this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival – which already carries the meaning of reunion and moon-gazing in Vietnamese culture – becomes even more special as the full moon is also a super moon. This is a rare intersection between tradition and astronomy, creating the most brilliant moon-gazing moment in many years.

The first supermoon will appear at 10:48 a.m. on October 7, Vietnam time. However, the ideal time to see it is on the evening of October 6 and the early morning of October 7, when the moon rises near the horizon.

To fully enjoy the beauty of the Mid-Autumn Festival super moon, you can:

Choose locations with little light pollution: West Lake ( Hanoi ), Do Son beach (Hai Phong), Ham Rong mountain (Sapa), or highlands such as Moc Chau, Da Lat.
Taking photos with your phone: Use a tripod, turn off the flash, reduce the brightness and focus manually to avoid overexposing the photo.
Enjoy with loved ones: Mooncakes, hot tea and bright moonlight – a perfect combo for a reunion night.

Three consecutive supermoons in autumn 2025

The fall of 2025 marks a rare astronomical event with three consecutive supermoons appearing in three consecutive months.

The first supermoon falls on October 7, coinciding with the traditional Vietnamese Mid-Autumn Festival – an interesting coincidence between culture and nature. The second supermoon will appear on November 5, coinciding with the full moon of the ninth lunar month. Finally, the third supermoon will take place on December 4, marking the last full moon of autumn.

While there are typically only three or four supermoons per year, it's rare for all three autumn full moons to be supermoons. The next time this happens will be in the winter of 2028.

Minh Hoan

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/hiem-co-3-sieu-trang-mua-thu-xuat-hien-lien-tiep-mo-man-dung-dip-tet-trung-thu-ar969307.html