A great orange moon hung ominously in the clear cold sky last night, as lunar cycles gave earth dwellers the eerie sighting of an amber full moon above Albert Bridge.
One of the coldest nights of winter had many shivering in their beds, but for those who went for a walk in the quiet chill, the celestial sight of a titian orb was visible above the Albert Bridge in London.
The Victorian bridge is said to be one of the most romantic structures in the capital city, with its candy-coloured paint and 4,000 bulbs illuminating it at night.
"Who knows if the moon's a balloon?"
Some say that an orange moon is a omen, a warning that something bad will happen. However though the whisky-coloured moon might appear spooky, it is more likely to be the result of atmospheric conditions.
Dust or pollution in the air can scatter light, causing only orange and red light be perceived by the eye. The moon is more likely to come into contact with these particles when it is closer to the horizon, as seen in these pictures.
Lunar lore suggests many odd happenings coincide with the appearance of the full moon. The word 'lunatic' comes from the Latin word for moon, 'luna' and the 1824 Lunacy Act suggested that people were likely to go mad around the time of the full moon.
In Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, the Scottish author's classic tale of duplicity in modern London, Mr Hyde's agressive streak rails particularly strongly around the full moon.
However last night's pictures of an orange moon are perhaps less frightening than awe inspiring, as the astrological phenomenon is juxtaposed with the flight path of an aeroplane.