The family that stargazes together, stays together.
What with its impact on our public holidays, people in the UAE tend to pay pretty close attention to the moon. On Wednesday night, though, there was another reason to look skyward.
That evening saw a super blue blood moon and Dubai’s royal family made sure to take in the special occasion.
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First, let’s establish what actually went on. Wednesday night’s full moon occurred when the moon was closer to the earth than usual, making it a super moon. It was the second full moon of the month, which is referred to as a blue moon.
It was also a lunar eclipse, which happens with the sun, moon and earth all line up. When the moon is in the earth’s shadow, NASA explains, it takes on a red tint, earning it the blood moon title.
All three of those events lining up in one night is very rare, and January 31 was in fact the first time it had happened in 152 years.
So pretty special, then. Judging by the look of their Instagrams, the royal family of Dubai agreed.
HRH Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein shared this sweet family picture of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum watching the moon with Sheikha Al Jalila and little Sheikh Zayed.
The Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai took in the view with his son and daughter at his side. Bless.
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, keen photographer that he is, shared a stunning shot of the moon behind the Burj Khalifa, which you can see here.
Amazing. The Crown Prince of Dubai also posted a time lapse of the moon rising.
Here in the Middle East, we were well placed to see the eclipse as the moon rose, where as the west coast of the United States saw it as the moon set. Places like Australia and New Zealand saw the whole thing, and most of Africa and South America didn’t see it at all.
While we won’t see the likes of this moon again any time soon, it’s been well recorded. Keep watching the skies.
Images: Instagram
