Right about now, many New Zealanders lucky enough to have clear skies will be getting a chance to see a blood moon.
Down South will have the most amazing view to witness the rare celestial phenomenon called a selenelion.
A selenelion is when both the sun and moon appear just above the horizon at opposite points in the sky.
Professor Richard Easther from the University of Auckland explained to TVNZ1’s Breakfast that a selenelion occurs when the moon is in Earth’s shadow but can still be seen from Earth.
Professor Easther agreed that the occurrence sounds impossible given that the sun, Earth and moon must be in a straight line but it occurs “because the light from the sun is bent a little bit by the Earth’s atmosphere, particularly when it’s close to the horizon.”
“The tricky thing is that every day the sun rises a little bit earlier and sets a little bit later that it really does.
“So that means the moon is kind of jacked up a little bit in the sky relative to where it is and the sun likewise is peeping up over the horizon a little early.
“It gives you a couple of minutes when both of them will be in the sky at the same time.”
Stargazers in Southland and Otago will have the best chance of seeing the celestial event few get to witness.
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