Lunar eclipse to create blood moon spectacle … but world won’t end. Probably

An awe-inspiring blood-red supermoon will cast its eerie light on the Earth early on Monday, creating an atmosphere of wonder and fear across the world. For amateur astronomers it will be a rare chance to capture a spectacular celestial event that has not occurred for 30 years - a lunar eclipse with the moon near to its closest point to the Earth. But for some – religious groups and believers in astrology – the eclipse will be dreadful in the most literal sense, a sign that the End of Days is approaching.

The end of the world is not going to happen

Robin Scagell, vice-president of the Society for Popular Astronomy

When the moon is at perigee, its shortest distance from the Earth, it is 226,000 miles away and appears 14% larger and 30% brighter than when it is at its farthermost point. The last time it coincided with a lunar eclipse, when the moon is covered by the Earth’s shadow, was in 1982 and the event will not be repeated until 2033. During a lunar eclipse, the moon turns a deep rusty red, as sunlight is scattered by the Earth’s atmosphere. Robin Scagell, vice-president of the Society for Popular Astronomy, said: “It’s definitely worth setting the alarm for to look out and see this red moon hanging over the tree tops.”

Astrology proves one thing only, that there’s one born every minute.

Sir Patrick Moore

Science lunar eclipse