The most interesting dramatic
lunar event of the year is upon us. On Tuesday night, the moon's only total
eclipse of the year.
It's a good night for it, as our celestial
watch reaches one of its closest points to Earth, otherwise known as a Supermoon.
What is a super blood moon lunar eclipse?
There's a lot to unpack
here, so let's start with the eclipse part.
A lunar eclipse occurs
when the moon crosses the Earth's shadow, preventing the sun from shining on
it.
Depending on its orbit,
the moon appears to partially or completely disappear from the night sky for
several minutes before returning to the sunlight.
But there's also a
so-called "supermoon" going on.
Astronomers and
skywatchers somewhat disagree on the true definition of a supermoon.
How far the moon should be
from Earth to qualify as a supermoon depends on who you ask –
But, generally, it refers
to the times when a full moon is at its closest point to Earth, called perigee.
That makes it appear even
bigger and brighter than most full moons.
The reference to blood may
seem macabre, but it refers to the brick-red hue the moon can take on due to an
optical illusion.
To better explain this
phenomenon, before the direct opposition of the sun and the moon are, the light
of the sun.
The light is reflected
normally directly on the lunar surface crosses the terrestrial atmosphere.
This last filters the blue
of the spectrum UV to leave only the reds and the oranges, from where the
effect of reddish gradient.
This is the same mechanism
that gives sunsets and sunrises their beautiful colors.
That is according to
Space.com's interview with Jackie Faherty, an astronomer, and astrophysicist at
the American Museum of Natural History.
Then there is the
"floral" aspect, which simply means a nickname given to the full moon
that occurs primarily in May.
This is the month that the
first skywatchers is associated with the
new flowers of spring.
Namely the Algonquin
peoples belonging to North America, according to the Farmer's Almanac.
Blood moon lunar eclipse Occurrence
The eclipse occurs on the
morning or evening of Wednesday, May 26, depending on your global positioning.
It is most visible to
those in southern and western South America, western North America, the Pacific
Ocean, Southeast Asia, New Zealand, and Australia.
In Coordinated Universal
Time (UTC), a neutral time zone used by astronomers, the process begins at
08:47 UTC (4:47 am EDT).
With the moon approaching
the Earth's shadow around 9:45 UTC (5:45 am EDT).
The point at which the
moon is completely engulfed by the Earth's shadow, called totality, occurs at
11:16 UTC (7:16 am EDT).
Also, it will remain in
darkness for about 14 minutes and 30 seconds.
In other lunar eclipses,
totality is known to last more than 100 minutes, or as little as a few seconds.
Will moon lunar eclipse be visible anywhere?
Unfortunately, No, as half of our planet will have already
entered daylight, according to a handy map available at TimeandDay.com.
The Pacific regions offer
the best view, especially South Asia, Australia and Oceania, Hawaii and
Antarctica (if you help the search that way).
Western and Central North
America, Central America and the southern tip of South America will experience
some degree of totality.
While those in the
southern and central U.S. Canada and South America may see a partial eclipse.
However, the chances of
catching part of the eclipse are marginal for the northeastern U.S as well as
the eastern half of Brazil, South America.
Besides, other Atlantic
coastal countries, as well as the east coast of the U.S. and Canada.
Meanwhile, Russia, Europe, and Africa will miss this year's show completely.
When is the next lunar eclipse?
The other half of the planet
will have to wait for the next total lunar eclipse - May 16, 2022.
When most of North and
South America, as well as parts of Europe, Africa and western Russia will be
able to participate in the show.
