It is the second supermoon this year after last month's Harvest Moon and is one of four in four consecutive months.

Stardome astronomer Josh Aoraki told RNZ there were usually a few supermoons each year.

"The term 'supermoon' is more of a media term than a scientific one," Aoraki said.

"The scientific term for what we are describing is what's called perigee and apogee, they are the two points where the moon is at its closest and its furthest to Earth, and that's because the moon's orbit is elliptical. When you get the moon at its closest point during a full moon, that's when we have a 'supermoon'."