The first ‘super blue blood moon’ for more than 150 years lit up the skies last night.
The rare celestial event is a combination of the moon being at its closest point to earth (or super moon), the second full moon in a month (or blue moon), and a lunar eclipse, when the earth casts a red shadow on the moon.
The 'trifecta' had stargazers in the western hemisphere reaching for their telescopes and cameras, although the full eclipse was not visible in Europe.
Supermoons occur when the moon reaches its closes point to Earth, meaning it will appear 14 per cent bigger and 30 per cent brighter in the sky.
NASA said: “The moon will lose its brightness and take on an eerie, fainter-than-normal glow from the scant sunlight that makes its way through Earth’s atmosphere. [They’re] often cast in a reddish hue because of the way the atmosphere bends the light.”
“You’ll want to capture the moment when you get the chance, because it will take until May 18, 2019, for the following blue moon to occur.”
“Sometimes the celestial rhythms sync up just right to wow us. Heed your calendar reminders.”
Blue Blood Moon 2018
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