Stargazers in the UAE will be treated to their first supermoon of the year on October 7, when the full Moon reaches its closest point to Earth and appears larger and brighter than usual.
The supermoon, known as the Hunter’s Moon, will rise just after sunset and will appear as full until October 9.
It can appear up to 14 per cent larger and 30 per cent brighter compared to when it is at its farthest point from Earth.
“The Moon looks bigger when it’s near the horizon due to the ‘moon illusion’,” Khadijah Ahmed, operations manager at the Dubai Astronomy Group, told The National.
“Although the Moon's actual size doesn't change, our brain perceives it as larger when we see it next to objects like trees or buildings on the horizon.”
Celestial calendar for the UAE
The Hunter's Moon will be the first of many celestial events in a busy season for stargazers. The Orionids meteor shower will peak on October 21 and 22, sending bright streaks of light across the night sky.
The next supermoon, Beaver Moon, will appear on November 5. It is expected to be the largest of the year. The Leonids meteor shower will peak on November 17 and 18.
These will be followed by the final supermoon of the year, the Cold Moon, appearing on December 4.
Full moons are named after traditional seasonal changes or activities, such as hunting in autumn, beaver trapping in early winter and cold weather in December.
The season will close with the Geminids meteor shower on December 13 and 14. The Geminids are among the most reliably visible and dazzling showers, and can feature 120 meteors an hour at their peak.
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Game Of Thrones Season Seven: A Bluffers Guide
Want to sound on message about the biggest show on television without actually watching it? Best not to get locked into the labyrinthine tales of revenge and royalty: as Isaac Hempstead Wright put it, all you really need to know from now on is that there’s going to be a huge fight between humans and the armies of undead White Walkers.
The season ended with a dragon captured by the Night King blowing apart the huge wall of ice that separates the human world from its less appealing counterpart. Not that some of the humans in Westeros have been particularly appealing, either.
Anyway, the White Walkers are now free to cause any kind of havoc they wish, and as Liam Cunningham told us: “Westeros may be zombie land after the Night King has finished.” If the various human factions don’t put aside their differences in season 8, we could be looking at The Walking Dead: The Medieval Years.
Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Read more from Aya Iskandarani
Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
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