Published 14:15 IST, August 3rd 2020
Red Sun and Red Moon: Why were the Sun and the Moon red on August 2?
Three towns of Arizona i.e. Phoenix, Payson, and Kingman witnessed a red sun on August 2. Here are the causes for the occurrence of the Red Sun and Red Moon.
- Science News
- 2 min read
Three towns of Arizona i.e. Phoenix, Payson, and Kingman witnessed a red Sun on August 2. Are you wondering, “Why was the Sun red”? While the red Sun may have occurred due to the Sturgeon Moon phenomenon, some believe that this may be due to the Apple fire in California. According to a weather report, Western Arizona witnessed smoke due to the 20,000-acre Apple Fire of Southern California.
Apple Fire of Southern California:
On August 2, there was a wildfire in Riverside County, Southern California. As per reports, about 8,000 people had to be evacuated. Reportedly the fire spread across 700 acres on July 31 whereas it covered 4,125 acres on August 2.
Locals referred to this fire as the Apple Fire. The fire first started in Cherry Valley which is approximately 75 miles east of Los Angeles. The Riverside County fire department shared a Tweet on Sunday which stated that the fire had spread across 1200 acres and was 0% contained. The Tweet also stated that several evacuation orders and warnings had been issued. You can check out the Fire Department’s Tweet here:
The Full Sturgeon Moon:
Are you wondering, “Why was the moon red on August 2”? On August 2, the full moon appeared to be like an orangish orb. While Native Americans refer to this phenomenon as Sturgeon Moon, people in the United Kingdom call it the ‘Grain Moon’. The full moon is visible all night and appears to be relatively low.
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The full moon on August 2 was called a Sturgeon Moon because the ginormous Sturgeon of Lake Champlain and the Great Lakes was easily caught during this time. This moon is also referred to as Full Green Corn Moon, Wheat Cut Moon, Moon When All Things Ripen, and Blueberry Moon. Are you wondering, “What is a Sturgeon”? A Sturgeon is a prehistoric-looking fish that was first discovered 136 million years ago. These fishes were also referred to as ‘living fossils’. Here are some interesting facts about the Sturgeon fish:
- Female Sturgeons can live for about 150 years.
- There are about 29 species of Sturgeon fishes in the world
- These fishes have now become endangered due to overfishing as well as pollution.
- These fishes have evolved in size.
All images sourced from Shutterstock
Updated 14:15 IST, August 3rd 2020