Having the sun behind you gave you the brightest contrast between the white rocks and the water. Light striking the water would bounce away. Light striking the rocks would bounce the light back to you. The improved lighting conditions made the island much easier to see.
Next time you see the moon rise, position your thumb sideways at arms length and use it to measure the size of the moon. Then check it overhead. It is an illusion.
Mirages cause light to bend like the wet looking highway on a hot day at low angle. This bending can cause fun house mirror effects in one axis. Not aware of any natural phenomenon that cause light to bend in a circular manner which would be required to magnify something like a lens. In other words if the moon was being magnified at the horizon it would be an ellipse.
|