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You are here: Home / Science / Does the Moon Turn Red When It Sets and Is It the Same Reason Sunsets Are Red?

Does the Moon Turn Red When It Sets and Is It the Same Reason Sunsets Are Red?

June 23, 2020 by Karen Hill

The moon sometimes does turn red when it sets, and for the same reason the sun does.

The light sent to earthly eyes, in the case of the moon, reflected sunlight, is seen filtered through a layer of polluted air, and the path through the dirty air is longest when the heavenly body is at the horizon.

The larger pollution particles scatter and absorb blue light, so the red shines through.

It is an old wives’ tale that when the moon is red it will be hot and humid the next day.

In fact it is the attenuation of moonlight by particles that causes it to turn red.

Typically the particles that are in the air when it is hot and humid are the same that are there when the moon is red, but it’s the particles, not the temperature.

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  • Why Are Primary Colors Blue, Green, and Red In Science But Blue, Yellow, and Red In Art Class?
  • What Causes the Phases Of the Moon and What Are the Different Phases Of the Moon Called?
  • How Does the Moon Always Keep the Same Face Toward Earth?
  • Why Is the Ocean Blue and Is It Just a Reflection of the Sky?
  • Why Are Sunsets Red and the Sky Blue?

Filed Under: Science

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

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