A Great Blood Moon

Blood Moon, 6-15-2011 (credit: NASA)

A Great Blood Moon occurs when the Moon passes in front of the Earth's shadow during the full moon phase creating a total eclipse.The blood-like colors are caused by refracted sunlight passing through the Earth's atmosphere producing red hues on the lunar surface. The result can be a stunning sight to behold particularly in desert landscapes where there is little or no contamination by light pollution from urban areas.

Photographer Peter Hines captured the entire time-lapse process from a 'dark skies' vantage point near Arches national park in southern Utah.

    Breat Blood Moon lunar eclipse, 5-15-2022 (credit: Peter Hines-Facebook)

An eerie, cloud-induced, SciFi-esque video of the eclipse was captured by the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles as well. Both the photographic and video sequences show the power and beauty of a Blood Moon that must have marvelled people in antiquity just as much as it still does today. WHB

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