Partial lunar eclipse in Regensburg, Germany in 2017
Thomas Koschnick/Alamy
Solar and lunar eclipses always occur in pairs. Earlier this month, an annular “ring of fire” solar eclipse appeared over much of the United States, and now it’s the Moon’s turn.
On Saturday night, October 28th, people in the UK, Europe, Asia and Africa will experience a partial lunar eclipse, which will see parts of the moon turn red. Some areas of North America, South America, and Australia will only see part of the eclipse, called the penumbral phase, in which the moon will be slightly darker.
What time is the partial lunar eclipse on October 28th?
The maximum time of the solar eclipse will be 9:14 pm in London, 10:14 pm in Berlin, 11:14 pm in Moscow, 1:44 am in Mumbai and 4:14 am in Hong Kong. The penumbra phase begins approximately 2 hours before the maximum and ends approximately 2 hours after the maximum. You can check the exact time for your location using free software such as: Stellarium.
How to observe a partial lunar eclipse
You don’t need any special equipment to view a lunar eclipse. As long as you live in a place where you can see a solar eclipse and the sky is clear, you’ll likely see parts of the moon turning red. During the October 28th lunar eclipse, only a small portion of the moon (up to 12 percent) will turn red.If you have binoculars Or a small telescope will help you see it.
What is a lunar eclipse?
A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon moves into Earth’s shadow and blocks the sun’s light. In other words, a lunar eclipse always occurs during a full moon. However, lunar eclipses do not occur every full moon because of the tilt of the moon’s orbit.
What causes a partial lunar eclipse?
A partial lunar eclipse occurs when the moon is not completely aligned with the Earth and the sun. That is, only part of the moon falls into the Earth’s shadow. The Earth’s shadow has two parts, the darkest inner part is called the umbra, and the outer part is called the penumbra. During the penumbral phase of a solar eclipse, the moon enters this outer shadow and becomes slightly darker. The red color is only visible when the moon enters the umbra.
Why does the moon turn red?
During a lunar eclipse, the moon is not completely invisible like the sun is visible during a solar eclipse. This is because of the Earth’s atmosphere. Although the moon is in Earth’s shadow, light is scattered through Earth’s atmosphere, and only the longer wavelengths of sunlight, at the red end of the spectrum, bend or refract around Earth and pass through. To do. The moon reflects this back to us, creating a red or orange glow. This is the same reason why the sun appears red at sunrise and sunset. Because of the red glow, lunar eclipses are sometimes called blood moons.
Why do solar eclipses occur in pairs?
A solar eclipse only occurs when the moon’s orbit around the Earth is tilted by about 5 degrees compared to the Earth’s orbit around the sun, causing the moon to be in line with the sun and Earth. This is called continuous eating. Solar eclipses occur at new moons and lunar eclipses occur at full moons, so solar eclipses tend to occur at two-week intervals.
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