Many questions come to mind when one hears about the blood moon. Are there really any effects on our health? What does it mean? Will we see things change for the better or worse? How does it affect us? These are only some of the many questions raised by people who want to know more about the Blood Moon.
To have the blood moon is very rare
First, you have to identify a super blood moon, which isn’t so easy. A super blood moon is when the moon is half full, red, and brighter than normal. You can easily see a full moon with the naked eye during its rise and fall. Blood Moon events usually happen during a total solar eclipse. This happens when the Earth happens to be on a partial eclipse phase.
Now what causes the blood moon to be reddish? It is caused by the earth spinning on its axis faster than normal. During these cases the earth spins faster than the moon, which causes the reddish color. This happens in rare instances. Usually the earth’s spin on its axis will cause it to wobble and make the moon appear red.
Why does the earth wobble?
The moon orbits the earth every 3 days. It moves across the surface of the earth and as it moves it causes the moon to wax and wane. The earth also slows down and spins faster, causing it to move across the surface at different speeds.
So what causes the blood moon to appear red? Well, during a total lunar eclipse of the full moon is visible from the planet Earth. The red color is caused by the earth’s shadow. The moon’s shadow travels across the face of the earth. This shadow effect is called the “blood-red moon.” If you were to observe the shadow moving across the face of the earth you would see a reddish glow on the left side of the shadow.
During a total lunar eclipse the red color occurs because the earth spins faster than the moon. How does this work? Well, during a totality there are many stars in the sky. These many stars shine through the dust that is produced due to the rotation of the earth. The red dust that forms during a total lunar eclipse appears red because the red dust is spinning around the rotating moon.
What happens if you don’t have a total moron? A new or full moon will not cause the eclipse. A red spiderweb pattern can be seen along the surface of the earth. This pattern is caused by the sun reflecting off the atmosphere that surrounds the red giant. So the red spiderwebs on the surface of the earth are caused when the full moon is present.
If you get up around sundown the red glow will be greatly reduced. Why is this? Well, the earth is still slightly under the total moon’s influence. So, at sundown the umbra (the dark cloud that sits above the moon) no longer exists. Only the moon and the sun are shining through.
The closer it gets to the horizon the smaller the umbra gets. It appears smaller because the earth is moving under its influence. When the full moon moves too close to the earth is pushed down causing the atmosphere to expand. This expanding of the atmosphere makes the sun shine through the clouds. As the full moon moves away from the horizon the glow of the sun decreases.
The full-blood moon only occurs once every year. So don’t try to tell others when it will be. There is really no way to predict when the blood moon will be. You will just have to settle on the date for your next total lunar eclipse.
The best time to view these eclipses is from a high place. Try to find a spot in your yard where the sun is higher than it usually is during the day. Look closely at the sky during the time of the full moon. If you can see the shape of the earth’s shadow across the moon’s disk, it means that there will be a total lunar eclipse.
If the moon appears bigger than the color of the sun is red, if it appears smaller than the color of the moon is yellow. If you live in the United States, the color of the full moon is red while those in the United Kingdom it is yellow. During the Blood Moon Eclipse the sky will turn completely black. It is believed that this happens because the moon is reflecting the sun and this reflection is creating a shadow. People living near the coast will notice the difference in color as the sunlight reflects off the water.