I found this picture on the Internet after yesterday's full moon which looks like a plane is cutting the moon in half. That was actually a vapour trail from a plane captured by some lucky photographer. The moon yesterday night seemed brighter and yellower than usually, and was beatuful to look at. I found it was the first time since January 19, 1992, that the moon has been so close to the Earth. It is a natural phenomenon that happens when the full Moon coincides with when it travels closest to Earth on its orbit.

Some people believe super moon can cause natural disasters, and point to Japan's tsunami just days ago, and to cyclon Tracy wich distroyed Darwin city in Australia in 1974. They claim full moons cause an outbreak of strange behaviour among people and animals, and can trigger labour in pregnant women. Even the term lunacy, they say, is derived from the name of Luna, the Roman moon goddess.

Scientists, however, say there is little fear of a full moon triggering a natural disaster - pointing to the 'super moon' from March 1983 that passed without incident. The studies I've seen, did not find anything tieing lunar phases to violence, suicides, seizures, admissions to psychiatric hospitals, or anything else that could be considered abnormal.

I was glad I did this little research as I was able to enjoy the full moon safe in the knowledge it was unlikely to provoke any bizarre behaviour from my friends and family.