The Moon and Colors

Full moon tonight. I went out at midnight - the sky is clear - and it is as bright as it could be in the middle of the night - without artificial light. Strong shadows.

I read recently that conventional wisdom is that you can only see in black & white in moonlight - but that some people can see colors. I was glad to read that because I knew that I had seen colors with moon light. And I knew that I wasn't imagining it.

I can see colors tonight. Like the leaves of the coleus plants. Some are bright green, some medium, some burgundy. The burgundy colors are harder to see without direct moonlight. There are also some yellow petals on some volunteer flowers in a pot. Can't make out the color of the centers so much - mostly that they are dark.

I can't make out the colors of things (like flowers that I know to be colorful) from much of a distance. I seem to have to be within 10-15 feet m/l.

The article that I read said that it has to do with ones rods and cones and some people's rods and cones are more sensitive than others.

There was an owl out there howling in the moonlight also - too far away - I couldn't see it. Mostly it was quiet.
_______________________________

P.S. I went out the next night - when the moon was supposed to be at 98% - but it was another cloudless night - and it was noticably more difficult to see colors. The yellower colors seemed to show up more than others.