On January 21, millions of people will have the opportunity to see a lunar eclipse—what the media generally calls it the “blood moon” event. Some sunlight still shines on the moon, refracted by the Earth's atmosphere, and then illuminates it with a glow of off-white to dark red,

htmlOn January 21, millions of people will have the opportunity to see a lunar eclipse—what the media generally calls it the " blood moon " event. During the lunar eclipse, the full moon moves into the shadow of the earth cast by the sun and temporarily becomes dark. Some sunlight still shines on the moon, refracted by the Earth's atmosphere, and then illuminates it with a glow of off-white to dark red, a color that depends on atmospheric conditions. The word “blood moon” is not accurate because it implies something beyond a lunar eclipse, reminiscing of an image of a moon shining with a crimson red light that is not accurate at all. This phrase shows some interesting ways modern society creates sky stories. Lumbar eclipses have attracted cultures around the world and inspired some compelling myths and legends, many of which portray lunar eclipses as a omen. This is not surprising because if something disrupts the laws of the sun or the moon, it will have a strong impact on our lives.

For many ancient civilizations, "Blood Moon" has evil intentions. Ancient Inca interprets this crimson red as jaguar attacks and eats the moon. They believe that jaguars may turn their attention to the ground so that people will yell, wield spears, and make their dogs bark in hopes of making enough noise to drive the jaguar away. In ancient Mesopotamia, lunar eclipses were considered to be direct attacks on the king. Considering that they are able to predict eclipse with reasonable accuracy, they will set up a proxy king for the duration of the eclipse. A man considered to be able to sacrifice (not a popular job) would pretend to be a king, while the real king would hide and wait for the solar eclipse to pass. The proxy king will disappear and the old king will be restored. Some Indian folklore explains the lunar eclipse as the result of the demon Rahu drinking the elixir of immortality. The twin gods Sun and Moon immediately beheaded Rahu, but after taking the elixir of immortality, Rahu's head is still immortal. For revenge, Rahu's head chased the sun and the moon to eat them. If he catches them, we will see a solar eclipse – Rahu will swallow the moon, which will reappear from his cut-off neck. For many Indians, lunar eclipses bring bad luck. Food and water were covered and cleaned. Pregnant women should not eat or do housework in particular to protect their unborn children.

But not all eclipse myths are troubled by such malicious intentions. Native American Hupa and Luisono tribes from California believe the moon is injured or sick. After the lunar eclipse, the moon needs treatment, either by the moon's wife or by the tribe's people. For example, Louiso would sing a healing song to the dim moon. Overall, the legend of African Togo and Benin Bata Maliba people is even more exciting. Traditionally, they believed that lunar eclipse was a conflict between the sun and the moon, and people had to encourage them to resolve this conflict. Therefore, this is the time to eliminate old hatred, and this practice continues to this day.

Once again, Christianity equates lunar eclipse with God's wrath and often associates lunar eclipse with Jesus' crucifixion. It is worth noting that Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon in spring, which ensures that the solar eclipse does not occur on Easter Sunday, which may be a sign of Judgment Day. In fact, the term "blood moon" became popular after the publication of Christian pastor John 2 Hagee's book "Four Blood Moons". He advocated a kind of apocalypse called the "Blood Moon Prophecy" and emphasized the four total html eclipse in January 2 that occurred in 2014/15. Hagh pointed out that all four incidents occurred in Jewish festivals, and only happened three times before - each with obvious unfortunate events. The prophecy was rejected by Mike Moore (Secretary-General of the Israel Christian Witnesses) in 2014, but the term is still frequently used in the media and has become synonymous with a worrying lunar eclipse. Given the long-standing superstition, science communicators try to remind everyone that the so-called "blood moon" is nothing scary, which is extremely useless.It may be impressive, maybe the longest in a century, but it is just an eclipse. So by using the term “blood moon” we combine superstition with science, just like the legendary description of the mechanics of the moon’s orbit in Hindu folk tale Rahu. The “Blood Moon” attracts interest in the sky and lunar eclipse, but rather than waiting for doom and destruction, we can see it better as an immortal example of the fascinating and real movement of the solar system. So my advice is: Watch the lunar eclipse, just like the sky spreads over your head. Give it your own name, give it your own meaning, and enjoy it with your friends and family. I think you will find that the word "blood moon" does not properly describe the wonders you see.