(ORDO NEWS) — In 2022 we were in for a breathtaking sight of the sky: a rare coincidence of five planets in June and a total lunar eclipse in May.
But all good things come to an end. On Tuesday, November 8, Earth will experience its last total lunar eclipse in nearly three years.
And trust us, you won’t want to miss it.
Known as a “bloody eclipse”. moon” due to the strange reddish tint that the full moon takes on, a total lunar eclipse is a fantastic opportunity for the whole family to see a spectacular astronomical phenomenon – without binoculars or special equipment.
After this week, the next total lunar eclipse will not occur until March 13-14, 2025 (depending on where you are).
A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth passes between the Sun and the Moon, causing its shadow to cross the Moon.
While direct sunlight is completely blocked, the Earth’s atmosphere is transparent enough for some of the light to reach the Moon.
But this light is refracted, which means that the shorter blue wavelengths of light scatter more than the longer red ones, causing the shadow to give the moon an eerie red glow. Hence the name “blood moon”.
This atmospheric scattering is the same phenomenon that makes sunrises and sunsets here on Earth appear reddish.
The total eclipse that will occur on November 8, 2022 has a totality that lasts a leisurely 1 hour and 25 minutes, which means that we all have enough time to go outside, get used to the darkness and see how the “blood moon” plunged into an eerie red. the shadow of our own planet.
This also means that the eclipse will be visible from most of the world – everyone on the night side of the Earth within an hour or so after 08:00 UTC will be able to witness this phenomenon.
So, this means that a large part of Australia, New Zealand and Asia will see an eclipse on Tuesday evening. For Australians, the eclipse will begin at 8:09 pm ET and the total will occur from 9:16 pm to 10:41 pm ET.
North America and parts of South America will also be able to see the eclipse early Tuesday morning. morning before sunrise – for them everything starts just after 3:00 AM EST, but will generally run from 5:16 AM to 6:41 AM EST.
You can use the tool at TimeandDate.com to find out when an eclipse will happen for you.
Other regions where at least some parts of the eclipse can be observed include Northern/Eastern Europe, the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans, the Arctic and Antarctica.
Watching our familiar companion go rusty is in itself worth waking up early – or staying up late – for.
But this time around, there’s the added bonus of Uranus, which also rarely appears for those with binoculars on hand.
During totality, without light, the Moon obscures the distant icy planet, Uranus should appear as a bright star about a finger’s length above our satellite.
Those without binoculars will also be able to see with the naked eye the closer planets Jupiter and Saturn above the blood moon.
If you don’t have an area where you can watch the eclipse this time, don’t worry, you can also watch online! The Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, TimeandDate and the Italian Virtual Telescope Project are live streaming.
Wherever you are, we hope you will have clear skies, or at least a good internet connection, and be able to witness our planet’s shadow changing the color of our satellite.
There is nothing better than an eclipse that makes us feel so small and so connected to the cosmos at the same time. Happy sky viewing!
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