Why the moon looks bigger tonight

A composite picture, based on an image of the moon taken by the Galileo spacecraft, shows the apparent size differences between a full moon at perigee (the closest point in lunar orbit) and one at apogee (the farthest point), as seen from Earth.

On December 12, 2008, the full moon will be at an unusually close perigee, offering sky-watchers a view of the biggest and brightest full moon seen since 1993.

Tonight the moon will look 30 percent brighter and 14 percent larger than 2008's other full moons.

(and a reminder of the very enjoyable movie Moonstruck)
Image credit NASA, text National Geographic, via Boing Boing.