The Moon Turns Red
- Photo by Doug Murray of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, during the total lunar eclipse of Oct. 27, 2004
- Saturday March 3 the moon will rise red in New Orleans because of a lunar eclipse. The phenomenon will be visible in seven continents including the eastern half of North America (us!).
Interestingly, if we were on the moon during the eclipse, we would witness a “ring of fire” around the black disc of the earth as it passed in front of the sun. The ground beneath our feet would glow red…..how cool would that be!
“The charm of the eclipse comes from Earth. Our planet is big enough by a factor of three to block the entire sun but, curiously, this doesn’t cause complete darkness. Rays of sunlight bend around the edge of Earth, filtering through the atmosphere. As seen from the moon, the edge of Earth lights up like a sunset-red ring of fire—one of the most beautiful sights in the solar system. ” From Science @ Nasa
Here in New Orleans the eclipse will already be underway when we see the red moon rise in the east as the sun sets in the west.
I soooo hope we have clear weather…..I’m already bummed that I missed Comet McNaught.
Oh and don’t worry…..I’ll remind you!
I want to try to see this, but it will already be underway when the moon rises for me, too.
Darmok
February 14, 2007 at 12:36 am