WBIR.com reader asks: "Todd, what does it mean when the moon is red?"
Some old wives' tales say a red moon signals an upcoming change in the weather-- this is not the case.
A red moon actually means there is a high concentration of particles in the air, such as dust and smoke.
The same process that creates colorful sunsets also causes the moon to appear red or orange.
The most obvious red moons occur during a total lunar eclipse, when the moon passes through the Earth's shadow.
The scattering of the blue end of the visible light spectrum allows the red end of the spectrum to illuminate the eclipsing moon.
Without the Earth's atmosphere, the moon would look much different to us during a lunar eclipse. While some sunlight would still reach the moon, it would be much dimmer and it wouldn't appear red or orange.