It was the night of the 25th April and it was about 11.30pm. I had just seen my friend out of my house as we had finished watching a movie and he called me about 2 minutes after I had locked up behind him saying "Check the moon out, it looks really weird!". So....still on the phone to him, I proceeded to my back garden where I usually have a very clear view of the moon all night...to discover....the moon wasn't there. I thought that was strange enough, telling my friend that I am looking but I don't see anything. To which he replied something even stranger....come out the front of your house, I'm walking back down now..you HAVE to see this!"

I of course went straight out the front to be presented with a vision that I did not expect. The moon firstly was in the centre of a massive orb of black out. Huge, just total black all around it no light from anything was getting through and surrounding this blackness was a huge circle of light. Now, don't get me wrong here. I have looked up at the moon a million odd times and there is always a small glow or sometimes a large glow around the mooon, fair play. This was like nothing I have ever seen before. I am talking miles wide here, the diamater of the blackness looked to be huge and around this a massive circle of light. We stood there for ages looking, I took a picture on my camera phone, I will try and upload but it is not the greatest of pictures.

Went to bed and forgot about it but now kinda wished that I had done more about it that night but I didn't. The most bizarre thing is, the moon was in the wrong position. From my house, the moon always rises and sets in the same place, which, I can see from my back garden. BUT on this night I could ONLY see the moon from my front garden, completely the opposite direction to where it should have been!!

Seriously strange and bizarre. We were talking about it again last night at a barbeque at my house and all the people there agreed it was impossible for the moon to have been where we saw it, physically impossible!

Did anyone else see anything like this on that night and if so...do you have any pictures? Any thoughts on this at all??

sometimes the atmosphere has a strange way of warping our view of the moon.

How exactly did the "atmosphere" change the apparent location of the moon? also if this was an optical illusion it would have shifted the apparent positions of the moon and stars and sun, so that hypothesis can be supported or defeated if the original whitness can remember whether the stars that surrounded the moon were in their proper locations.

Right, I am sat here on my computer now looking at the sun (it is 16:23 and I live in Cornwall, UK) which is currently in exactly the same position as the moon was when I saw it. The moon was a half moon and the blackness that was surrounding it was blocking out ANY light whatsoever. By this, I mean that in the blackness you could not see any stars at all. As for star positions, I am sooooooooooooo gutted that I didn't think to look at them. At the time I thought it was amazing but it was only the next day when I truly realised how amazing it was.

If it was an optical illusion I see how maybe the entire shy could shift(maybe extreme refraction), but This wouldnt account for the black portion. This black mask around the moon, you describe, doesnt neatly fit into any optical phenomenon I am familiar with.

I saw it too. If you want to know why it did that, try to remember what the moon was doing with a particular planet the night before, and then 2 days before that. It's been doing these things since the new year started. The calendars are wrong too.

why hint? Tell us how the planets make this effect? Why are the calendars wrong?

Does anyone have a picture? To show us for these who didn't see it.

I don't think I saw it.

I'm not sure if I want you and everyone else to know. If you watch them you'll figure it out. It's best to learn these things on your own anyways.

Like Opus, I too know what you had witnessed, but assure you that it is nothing out of the ordinary, it happens quite regularly. Just let you know, the moon that night did not magically move, it simply was not where you were expecting it to be. Every night the moon rises and sets at a different time, hence why you can see the moon under certain phases during the day. As for Opus wanting you to figure it out on your own, well I will not spoil that for him and will keep my lips sealed as to the causation. Enjoy your investigation.

argh just tell us

cant you just whisper it quietly? that way only a few of us will hear and i promise to keep schtum

What you describe around the moon is exactly how a "halo" looks. It is caused by the refraction or bending of light from the moon via ice crystals in the upper atmosphere and is nothing supernatural, Moon halo diagram.

As has been mentioned the moon rises and sets at different times and in different directions, if you enter your coordinates HERE you will see where the moon would have risen or set on the given date.

Not sure about the planets positions around that time & I haven't a clue why the calendars would be wrong either

I agree with Rik13, most likely moon halo. I've seen this as well...very eerie looking.

Not so sure that I would agree that the Origanl Poster saw a Moon halo. From his description (as I take it) the moon was enveloped in a large area of darkness. With a Moon Halo, light radiates out from the Moon in a concentric ring. This would make a presence of light not absence.

SUch as this
Click to view attachment

In my interpretation, the Moon was more similar to this, minus the tiny star to the left of the moon.
Click to view attachment

Original poster if you would please let us know which one is more accurate as to your description, that would help.

what was it then? I am intrigued !??

An astronomical explanation preferably ?

Ok, here we go...

Obsidian in post #15 kind of has both pictures of what I saw that night. Reading from here, I am willing to accept that it could have been a moon halo, however, it was a half moon. If you imagine the moon halo picture that you attached but the moon in the middle is the half moon picture you also attached then you would have it. BUT the main thing was that the INSIDE of the halo, from the moon to the halo was completely black and void of any stars or light. This blackness was huge, very very very big indeed!

Secondly, the position of the moon is what has spun me out the most. It was not where it was supposed to be and even using your moon calculator it was still in the wrong position. I am still a little baffled as to how this can happen.

Finally, can opus and Obsidion tell us what you meant by planets moving etc and things going on...I am very interested to know what it is, as I am sure others are too!

Yes I am getting curious now, mate.

All I can think of is occultation of the planets or stars , whereby as the bodies move position as they do, they become obscured (individually) by the moon at some point on their travels, the only other possibility is that the light from the moon overpowers the magnitude of the stars surrounding it making them invisible. Could the blackness have been exagerated by the bright rim of the halo and the half moon in the middle?


I don't think they know what it is either Sunshine' They are only having us on!!!

Can you post here the pic you took of the moon with your phone?

The pic looks rubbish! I only have a crappy old Nokia N70 so it's only 2mp and because it is so far away all you can see is a dim white dot on a black background, the halo was so far away from it that I couldn't get it all in to the picture. I will post it but honestly it is rubbish. So dissapointed that I didn't think to do more about it on the night. Any more info from anyone?

Examine the celestial bodies everynight. Watch the moon, and what surrounds it. Remember what the bodies are doing each night, and then place that image on the sky the following nights. The coincidences and connections you will notice will seem impossible, it may even make you question your own sanity.


Oh, and don't forget to include the objects that within the earth's magnetosphere and lower atmospheres.

He lives in England, you often don't get to see the stars for days !!

Sunshinegod, have you thought of asking for an explanation on an astronomy forum? It would be quicker & your sanity would not be in question!!

Voice of Reason here: What you saw was the refraction and bending of light around the moon, it happens. When the refraction of the suns light off the moons surface is especially bright it can block out other celestial bodies in the night sky giving the appearance that the area around the moon is inky and black.
It is scientifically impossible for the moon to just be in the completely wrong part of the sky - the moon sets and rises at different times every single day so it is not going to be in the same spot every night at the same time.
This just seems like you are really, really hoping that something paranormal has happened to you. Science it what has happened to you - but don't be bummed! Science is pretty cool in and of itself.

Are you a teacher opus? because it sounds like you are giving out homework

Why don't you spare us the doubt of our sanity and explain what sunshine saw to the best of your knowledge. It would be very kind of you, thanks!

or maybe you fear that we will doubt your sanity if you tell us??

It was pretty obvious. 4 nights this year a unique alignment happened, also we've had a solar eclipse and 2 lunar eclipses. Then surrounding these alignments all kinds of stuff happens that links up. There's even more significance when you notice the head and tail of the alignment.

That sounds a good explanation Gaia. To be fair I think the original poster just wanted an explanation. He's being lead up the paranormal path with opus's riddles I think?

A moon halo is a very cool event, I saw one when I was a kid. It made a big impression on me. I also have seen a blue moon, and while I know what causes it, that doesn't make the experience any less impressive for me.

Good journey.

Kyle Rajasthan.

Please, tell me what you mean by celestial bodies, perhaps it is best for me to figure out these things on my own, just briefly explain to me what these celestial bodies are if you will?

Celestial bodies are planets and stars. That type of thing.