This year’s most “explosive” display yet—captured on video: the shimmering moments of Matsu’s blue tears

▲ This year’s most explosive blue tears in Matsu, even visible directly on video. (Photo / Screenshot from YouTube)

Reported by Chen Ziying / Taipei

Early this morning (24th), news came from Dongyin in Matsu of an “explosive” amount of blue tears. A completely unedited video, taken around 2 AM—near high tide—shows the blue tears sparkling brilliantly as waves crash onto Fu Zheng Beach. Zheng Zhixin, a local who observes the blue tears phenomenon daily, said this was the largest amount seen so far this year.

The uploader of the video is Liu Juecheng, who works at a homestay in Dongyin. Since February this year, whenever the weather permits, he has been searching for blue tears on the island every day, capturing numerous photos and time-lapse works. From late on the 23rd to the early hours of the 24th, despite the rain, he still went out to chase the blue tears. He said, “That night, the northeast wind brought rain, with low tide at 20:06 on the 23rd and moonset at 23:05 on the 23rd. It was another spectacular event where the blue tears were clearly visible across the entire island. My camera was set to ISO 51200, allowing me to record the whole process directly on video—even with a smartphone, you might capture the brightest moments.”

%祭堆劾崧加捌婀邸＃ū居捌?阌拔?蹙舫希?淳?救诵砜汕胛鹑我庾?兀┘/strong>


It is understood that blue tears can only be seen under conditions of minimal light pollution. Affected by light pollution, ocean waves, wind, and other factors, the blue tears visible to the naked eye are usually faint bluish glows. To capture the beautiful sight of blue tears, photographers need to manually focus, use long exposure, and increase the ISO value. To record a spectacle like the one in the video, it requires a “perfect storm” of ideal conditions such as those seen in the early hours of the 24th, when there was an explosive amount of blue tears, making it possible to directly film the phenomenon.

Read more>>>>>What are blue tears? How to photograph them? A complete guide tells you everything