A rare phenomenon illuminated skies around the world on Wednesday night, and plenty of skywatchers were out to capture the second full supermoon of August.

Wednesday night's ultra-rare "blue" supermoon was the biggest and brightest-looking full moon of 2023, orbiting the Earth at a distance of just 357,344 kilometres, around 30k kilometres closer to the planet than the average distance of 384,400 kilometres.

Tonight's SUPER MOON view from Toronto Canada 🌕✨

Apologies for it's kinda shaky I didn't have my tripod with me lol 😆
📸🎞️ used: 70-300mm zoom lens on Canon EOS M200 🤘🏻 pic.twitter.com/ZxRJZMLYwm

— ROSÉ WINKED AT ME 😉 (@sunsetsandrosie) August 31, 2023

At that distance, the Moon appeared approximately 7 per cent larger than a normal full moon.

#BlueSuperMoon over Toronto. With hopes that the world will be a kinder, wiser, healthier place when we witness the next one in 2037. pic.twitter.com/0V0VVcT1SU

— CJ ⚾️⚕💉 (@CjHajer) August 31, 2023

Stargazers with telescopes and telephoto lenses were treated to the best views of the supermoon, though it was still more than prominent enough to be enjoyed with the naked eye.

#supermoon #BlueMoon

From 📍Toronto 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/weTXab3dxK

— onesimo (@onesimo28) August 31, 2023

Conditions peaked at exactly 9:36 p.m. Toronto time, when the celestial body appeared directly opposite the sun, providing the best viewing conditions.

La súper luna azul !!!
Que bonita forma en despedir
la última noche de AGOSTO !!!!

Me costó trabajo pero me encantaron mis fotitos !!!#SuperBlueMoon #supermoon #Toronto #nightlife pic.twitter.com/UdqVYLpU0Y

— Lu (@lula_viajera) August 31, 2023

Though some photographers edited their shots to add a blue hue, anyone expecting blue colouration visible to the naked eye, as the name of the event suggests, may have been disappointed.

The term blue moon refers to an extra full moon within a subdivision of a year, like, for example, a single month, and has nothing to do with the actual colour of the giant glowing orb.

Super Blue Moon from the beaches
by u/babs-jojo in toronto

August's blue supermoon was the first since 2018, and will stand as the only such event in the 2020s.

Tonight’s #supermoon from Toronto at #OntarioPlace pic.twitter.com/xCctz9nfNH

— Jason Wood 🗿 (@jasonwoody) August 31, 2023

Moon watchers will have to wait another 14 years until two full supermoons share a calendar month in 2037.