Click through the carousel above for our picture gallery
The spectacular sight of a pink moon rising greeted Melburnians with a clear view to the east on Tuesday night.
It was the result of a total lunar eclipse – when the sun, moon and earth are in perfect alignment, causing the earth’s shadow to fall on the moon.
Astronomical Society of Victoria spokesman Perry Vlahos said Tuesday night’s event was particularly special because it was rare to see the moon rise at sunset “already in the middle of an eclipse”.
“It took a while to get out of the low cloud on the eastern horizon but once it did it had a pinkish glow to it,” Mr Vlahos said.
The moon began to move into the earth’s shadow at 3.58 pm and was fully immersed in shadow by 5.06pm. The moon rose at 5.49pm, with the full eclipse remaining until about 6.25pm and the eclipse disappearing altogether by about 7.30pm.
The moon’s pink colour became apparent as it rose higher in the sky and darkness fell.
While the moon was in the earth’s shadow, preventing the sun’s direct rays from falling on it, Mr Vlahos said a tiny bit of light still managed to get around the earth’s atmosphere to fall on the moon.
“The sun’s light is all colours of the spectrum but it’s only the red light that pierces dust and gas,” he said.
The moon’s pink colour meant there was quite a bit of volcanic ash in the atmosphere from recent eruptions, he said. No dust could have meant a pale grey yellow moon, or a little bit of dust a tobacco-coloured moon.
Melbourne University astrophysicist Katie Mack said the presence of Mars was another feature of Tuesday night’s lunar eclipse.
“Mars is about as close as it ever gets to the earth in its orbit so it is comparatively big and bright right now,” she said.
Dr Mack said she saw a “really faint, shadowy, reddish” moon from her vantage point on a city balcony.
“It’s gorgeous, it’s really cool, it’s a full moon but it’s almost invisible,” she said.
Another total lunar eclipse is due to occur on October 8 but Mr Vlahos said the unusual spectacle of a fully eclipsed moon rising was not due to be repeated.
