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Stargazers may be in for a treat tonight as the so-called ‘Pink Moon’ rises in the sky.
April’s Full Moon – often referred to as the ‘Pink Moon’ – will shine brightly tomorrow morning at 05:34 BST as it reaches its full phase.
Despite its name, the moon retains its brown-tinted gray color during the spectacle ‘pink’ actually refers to the color of ground flowers.
Full moons are still shrouded in mystery, with several studies suggesting they can cause sleep problems, anxiety, and even violence.
Believing that the moon affects human health first arose in early folklore, Royal Museums Greenwich reports, with common signs of increased sleep problems and seizures.
April’s full moon – often referred to as the ‘pink moon’ – will shine brightly tomorrow morning at 05:34 BST when it reaches its full phase
While the scientific basis for such links is currently weak, some recent studies claim to have found a link between the moon and sleep.
In 2021, a number of scientists from Yale and the University of Washington found that people generally fall asleep less on nights leading up to the full moon.
This was related to differences in light intensity that prevented falling asleep in the early hours of the night.
The study explains: ‘In this context, it is mainly moonlight available during the first hours of the night that is more likely to cause changes in sleep onset.
“Moonlight, on the other hand, late at night, when most people are usually asleep, should have little impact on sleep onset or duration.”
Obviously, a full moon can bring 250 times more brightness than a moonless night, and 25 times more than when a crescent moon is visible.
However, the impact of this has been largely explored in the context of communities living without electricity.
It is also inconsistent with a number of other studies, including one in 2015 that found no connection between sleep and lunar cycles in more than 2,000 people.
Researchers at the University of Copenhagen therefore believe that the influence of moonlight may be limited in more urban environments.
‘In modern urban societies where most of us are surrounded by an abundance of artificial light and spend most of our evenings and nights indoors, this effect is likely to be minor, experts say.
For generations, many people have also believed that full moons are associated with fear and even violent behavior.
This idea goes all the way back to Aristotle who believed that water in the brain predisposes people to moon phases.
For generations, many people have also believed that the full moon is related to fear (stock image)
While the scientific basis for such links is currently very weak, some recent studies claim to have found a link between the moon and sleep (stock image)
Yet prevailing scientific evidence suggests that this is not the case a study actually finding a drop in homicides during a full moon.
Analysis of 17,966 medical records also showed no association between mental patient admissions or hospital stay times and lunar cycles.
This week’s Pink Moon is expected to be visible for several days around April 6, provided the sky is clear.
“Like the Earth, the Moon has a day side and a night side, which change as the Moon rotates,” NASA explains.
“The sun always illuminates half of the moon while the other half remains dark, but how much of that illuminated half we can see changes as the moon travels through its orbit.”
The moon may appear to have an orange or yellow hue as part of a rare blood moon event
During a full moon, the sun illuminates the entire day side of the moon, making it appear full and bright in the night sky.
“The moon is opposite the sun as seen from Earth, revealing the moon’s day side,” NASA explained. “A full moon rises around sunset and sets around sunrise.”
While it won’t turn pink this time around, the moon may occasionally appear to have an orange or yellow hue as part of a rare blood moon event.
In very rare cases, the moon can even appear blue when viewed through a haze of dust such as volcanic ash, Royal Museums Greenwich say.