This spectacular shot of a “magical” moon rising above Brighton was snapped over the Easter weekend as a family enjoyed the balmy weather on the beach.

Louise Goodall, a nurse from Southwick, was with her children in Hove when she spied the giant orange moon rising above Kemp Town.

She quickly pulled out her camera and the 40-year-old said she had “never seen a moon like it”.

Mrs Goodall said: “We had gone down to Marrocco’s for an ice cream with the kids and we looked over and just said ‘what on earth is that’ before taking loads of photos.

“It was just pure luck and it disappeared within a few minutes. It was quite magical.”

She added she would “like to get more into photography” having been gifted a camera for her birthday.

Mrs Goodall said: “This is probably the only picture I have taken that I thought was worth sending to the paper.

“Everything just fell into place, it was very clear and still and it all just came together.

This lunar phenomenon comes as the western United States, Canada and Australia were treated to another space spectacle – the blood moon caused by a brief eclipse – but this was unrelated to the view over Brighton.

Andy Lawes, chairman of East Sussex Astronomical Association, explained the phenomenon which is known as the “moon illusion”.

He called it “the world’s largest optical illusion” and said it has been “witnessed by millions this week and has puzzled great thinkers for centuries.”

He said: “A popular belief, stretching back at least to Aristotle in the 4th century BC, holds that the moon appears larger near the horizon due to a real magnification effect caused by the earth’s atmosphere.

“This is not true.

“Although the atmosphere does change, the perceived colour of the moon does not magnify or enlarge it.

“In fact, the visual image of the moon is about 1.5% smaller when it is near the horizon than when it is high in the sky.

“A simple way of demonstrating that the effect is an illusion is to hold a small object at arm’s length with one eye closed, positioning it next to the seemingly large moon.

“When the moon is higher in the sky, positioning the same object near the moon reveals that there is no change in size.

“If the photographer took pictures of the moon at different elevations throughout the night it would show that the moon remains the same size.”

For more information about the society go to www.esas.org.uk