英语新闻丨月全食期间“血月”现身

In ancient times, a blood moon was considered an omen, its copper glow instilling a sense of foreboding in people who felt it signaled an impending disaster. Today, however, huge advancements in the study of astronomy have meant the occurrence of the celestial event is eagerly awaited by astronomy enthusiasts and ordinary people alike, all keen to witness and document its rare beauty.

在古代，“血月”被视为一种不祥之兆，其铜红色的光辉让人们心生不安，认为这预示着灾难即将来临。然而如今，天文学研究的巨大进步使得这一天象备受天文爱好者和普通民众的热切期待，人们都渴望亲眼见证并记录下这一罕见的美景。

From 11:30 pm on Sunday to 5 am on Monday, this year’s first and only blood moon visible in China captivated stargazers across the country. Some leaned out of windows to stare at the sky, while others set up professional equipment to capture the spectacle.

从周日晚上11点30分到周一凌晨5点，中国境内今年首次也是唯一一次可见的“血月”吸引了全国各地的观星者。有人探出窗外仰望天空，也有人架设专业设备捕捉这一壮观景象。

Tang Haiming, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Shanghai Astronomical Observatory, said that a blood moon occurs during a total lunar eclipse when Earth aligns between the sun and the moon, casting its shadow over the moon. Colors with longer wavelengths make it through Earth’s atmosphere and make the moon appear orangish or reddish. The moon displays different shades of red depending on atmospheric conditions, he added.

中国科学院上海天文台研究员、上海市天文学会秘书长汤海明表示，“血月”出现在月全食期间，此时地球运行至太阳与月球之间，将阴影投射到月球上。波长较长的光线能够穿透地球大气层，使得月球呈现出橘红色或红色。他补充道，月球具体呈现出何种红色调，会因大气条件的不同而有所差异。

Tang, who is also secretary-general of the Shanghai Astronomical Society, said the blood moon was observed not only in Asia, but also in the Eastern Atlantic, Oceania, the Indian Ocean, Europe, Africa, the Western Pacific and Antarctica.

汤海明还指出，此次“血月”不仅在亚洲可见，在东大西洋、大洋洲、印度洋、欧洲、非洲、西太平洋以及南极洲地区也能观测到。

“The blood moon is a normal astronomical phenomenon. During a total lunar eclipse, the gravitational forces of the moon and the sun combine and can lead to astronomical tides. However, there is no need to panic. Many people from Shanghai went to the Qiantang River to see the tide,” Tang said.

汤海明表示：“‘血月’是一种正常的天文现象。月全食期间，月球和太阳的引力共同作用，可能会引发天文大潮，但无需恐慌。上海就有不少民众前往钱塘江观潮。”

According to him, the probability of a lunar eclipse occurring is relatively low, even more so for a total lunar eclipse, the last of which occurred in 2022.

他介绍，月食发生的概率本身就较低，月全食的概率更低，上一次中国境内可见的月全食发生在2022年。

“Since this total lunar eclipse occurred at midnight, the observatory employed a six-hour slow live broadcast format. Extensive astronomical explanations and introductions to lunar exploration projects were prepared beforehand, with the hope of using this opportunity to encourage people to look more at the sky,” he added.

他补充道：“由于此次月全食发生在午夜时段，天文台采用了长达6小时的慢直播形式。我们提前准备了详尽的天文知识讲解以及月球探测项目介绍，希望借此机会鼓励人们多抬头看看天空。”

When 37-year-old Beijing resident and astronomy enthusiast Zhang Yanliang first heard about the latest blood moon occurrence, he immediately began making preparations to see and photograph the celestial event.

37岁的北京市民、天文爱好者张延亮在得知此次“血月”天象消息后，立刻开始为观测和拍摄做准备。

Zhang said he has witnessed numerous astronomical phenomena such as the passing of Comet Hale-Bopp in 1997, the Leonid meteor shower, and solar and lunar eclipses. Although a total lunar eclipse was nothing new for him, he still did not want to miss it.

张延亮表示，他曾亲眼见过1997年海尔-波普彗星过境、狮子座流星雨、日食和月食等诸多天文现象。尽管月全食对他而言并不新鲜，但他仍不愿错过此次观测机会。

Setting up two cameras with 800-millimeter telephoto lenses — one for time-lapse videos and the other for still photos — Zhang took hundreds of shots, capturing the fine details of the moon.

他架设了两台配备800毫米长焦镜头的相机，一台用于拍摄延时视频，另一台用于拍摄静态照片，共拍摄了数百张照片，捕捉到了月球的细微细节。

“It’s worth mentioning that the weather in Beijing early this morning was excellent, with high atmospheric transparency, making it very suitable for viewing and photography,” he said, adding that with the development of smartphones, capturing celestial events has become easier, and many high-quality photos shared on social media had actually been taken with phones.

他说：“值得一提的是，今天凌晨北京的天气非常好，大气透明度高，非常适合观测和拍摄。”他还补充道，随着智能手机的发展，捕捉天象变得更加容易，社交媒体上分享的许多高质量天象照片实际上都是用手机拍摄的。

According to Tang from the CAS, the next total lunar eclipse visible in some parts of China is expected next year on March 3, right after sunset, and more activities are anticipated due to the favorable timing.

中国科学院的汤海明表示，下一次中国部分地区可见的月全食预计将在明年3月3日日落之后出现，由于观测时间更为适宜，预计届时会举办更多相关观测活动。

 blood moon

n.血月

/blʌd muːn/

total lunar eclipse

n.月全食

/ˈtəʊtl ˈluːnə ɪˈklɪps/