Jan. 31, 2016 - Sunset and Moon Rise from the Lighthouse

On January 23, 2016, the shadows were getting longer as I joined a group climbing the 92 steps that lead to the top of the St. George Island Lighthouse. Once each month, the rising of the full moon and the setting of the sun occur within minutes of each other. Tonight was the night and the top of the lighthouse was a great place to see and photograph this event. I tried doing this last year but the sky was completely covered with clouds so we couldn’t see either the sun setting or the moon rising. This year the weather was perfect. The sky was totally clear except for a few clouds on the western horizon.

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We were in position a few minutes before the actual event, so I took some photos of the area as seen from the top of the lighthouse. This is the view looking south over the Gulf of Mexico.

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To the north, you see a four-mile-long bridge connecting St. George Island to the town of Eastpoint on the mainland.

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Here’s the view looking to the east.

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To the west, the main event was starting. The sunset was enhanced by a low bank of clouds at the horizon.

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At the same time, the full moon was rising in the east.

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We’re looking east in this photo and the sun is setting behind us in the west. Notice the pink and blue layers of the sky. Under the right conditions, the whole sky takes on a pink hue as the sun sets. The blue layer is actually the shadow of the earth as the sun goes below the horizon.

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In this wide-angle view, the full moon looks really tiny.

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As it got darker, you could start to see some of the features on the moon.

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Here’s the sticker I got for climbing to the top of the lighthouse.

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