Did you see the moon recently? The sky exuded a mysterious vibe on October 8 for watchers in North America, Australia, western South America and parts of East Asia when the moon exhibited an eerie shade of red. BBC News said that the so-called "Blood Moon" started at 8:00GMT on the east US coast. Watchers in Asia were able to view the celestial phenomenon at around 10:00 GMT.
Although the "Blood Moon" seemed to be a one-of-a-kind event, we found out that this occurrence is actually expected by experts. CNN cited NASA eclipse expert Fred Espenak, who said that in the 21st century, people will have to look forward to many of these "Blood Moon" events. Before the dawn of the 20th century, Espenak shared that the "Blood Moon" was nonexistent.
Here are five other fascinating facts about the Blood Moon:
A "Blood Moon" is actually a lunar eclipse.
This article's title is read right. The "Blood Moon" occurs whenever there is a lunar eclipse, or the alignment of the moon, Sun and Earth, with the Earth's shadow covering the moon. The Sun being filtered through the planet's atmosphere projects a glowing, almost orange tinge from afar on the moon's surface, Buzzfeed said.
Tonight's "Blood Moon" is the second time that happened, and two more is expected this year.
CNN said that the first "Blood Moon" showed up in April. The third and fourth "Blood Moons" are said to happen in six-month intervals, with the third showing up on April 4 next year, and the other on September 28th. The series of "Blood Moons" is called by scientists as a tetrad.
The second "Blood Moon" is special.
The October 8 "Blood Moon" is considered special because of two reasons. CNN said that the phenomenon happened right after the sequence where the moon is closest in its orbit to Earth. Because of its proximity to our planet, the October 8 "Blood Moon" is 5% more bigger than the one first appeared in April. Espenak said that the tetrad beginning this year is unique because all of the moons were visible for almost all of the US.
The "Blood Moon" had another planet as its heavenly guest.
Slate.com said that watchers who have high-powered telescopes will be able to spot Uranus as a bluish-green star somewhere east of the moon. Uranus' presence during the second "Blood Moon" is an entirely incredible phenomenon on its own, considering that it is three planets and an asteroid belt away from Earth.
The Milky Way is visible at least in Australia
Astronomer Geoff Sims, who watched the "Blood Moon" from New South Wales, told BBC that the Milky Way was also visible. He said, "On the other side of the sky, the Milky Way is starting to appear because the rest of the sky has darkened. It's a very serene, kind of surreal experience actually."
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