Where does this come from, and can I check it?

Earth's atmosphere refracts red light into the shadow that colours the Moon. The figure is taken from NASA Science, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a space fact?

Yes. It sits on the Space shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

What else can I read about it?

The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

Lunar eclipses glow red because of bent sunlight

Earth's atmosphere refracts red light into the shadow that colours the Moon During a total lunar eclipse the Moon passes into Earth's shadow, yet it rarely goes completely dark. Sunlight grazing the planet's edge is bent through the atmosphere, and air scatters blue light away while letting red through. The result is a copper or brick-red disc, often called a blood moon. It sits in Mondo's space collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

NASA Science

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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Space & Astronomy trivia

More facts like this

Totality never lasts longer than about seven and a half minutesThe Moon's shadow is small, so you have to travel into its path Eclipses repeat on an 18 year Saros cycleThe Sun, Moon and node alignment recurs after 223 lunar months Lunar dust is sharp enough to scratch glassWith no wind or water to round them, soil grains keep jagged edges The Moon formed from a giant planetary impactA Mars-sized body struck the young Earth and threw debris into orbit The Moon is slowing Earth's spinTidal friction lengthens the day by a couple of milliseconds a century Mars once had a global magnetic fieldRemanent magnetism in old crust shows it switched off billions of years ago

Tags: eclipses, atmosphere, moon

Lunar eclipses glow red because of bent sunlight: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Earth's atmosphere refracts red light into the shadow that colours the Moon. The figure is taken from NASA Science, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a space fact?: Yes. It sits on the Space shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.