late evening lunacy
Nov. 19th, 2002 09:43 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
novapsycheThe sky in SE Michigan was overcast last night, so I was unable to see any meteor showers. (Maybe if I'd gone out earlier in the evening, before midnight.) But perhaps I'll still be rewarded with a view of celestial child's play.
Lunar Eclipse Tuesday Night to Dim Moon
Hours after skywatchers are treated to the Leonid meteor shower of the century, they can head outside again to observe another celestial show. On the evening of Nov. 19, the full Moon will dip into Earth's shadow, creating a penumbral lunar eclipse.
Lunar eclipses, like solar eclipses, are created by geometrical alignments of the Sun, Earth and Moon. The Sun casts two areas of shadow behind Earth. The umbra is a region of total shadow. It is flanked by two cone-shaped areas of semi-darkness called the penumbra.
Penumbral eclipses can occur because the Moon’s orbit is tilted 5 degrees compared to Earth's plane of movement around the Sun. When the Moon crosses into the umbra, partial or total lunar eclipses occur. Penumbral eclipses occur, naturally, when the Moon enters the penumbra. Lunar eclipses happen only when the Moon is full.
The first contact between Moon and shadow will be at 6:32 p.m. EST (23:32 UT). Along the West Coast of the United States, the eclipse begins during daylight and before the Moon rises. Viewer’s there will see a portion of the event – what’s visible after the sun goes down and the Moon comes up.
The eclipse will peak at 8:47 p.m. EST and will end at 11:01 p.m. EST. Various portions of the event will be visible to half of the world, including the Americas, Europe, Africa and Central Asia.
Lunar Eclipse Tuesday Night to Dim Moon
Hours after skywatchers are treated to the Leonid meteor shower of the century, they can head outside again to observe another celestial show. On the evening of Nov. 19, the full Moon will dip into Earth's shadow, creating a penumbral lunar eclipse.
Lunar eclipses, like solar eclipses, are created by geometrical alignments of the Sun, Earth and Moon. The Sun casts two areas of shadow behind Earth. The umbra is a region of total shadow. It is flanked by two cone-shaped areas of semi-darkness called the penumbra.
Penumbral eclipses can occur because the Moon’s orbit is tilted 5 degrees compared to Earth's plane of movement around the Sun. When the Moon crosses into the umbra, partial or total lunar eclipses occur. Penumbral eclipses occur, naturally, when the Moon enters the penumbra. Lunar eclipses happen only when the Moon is full.
The first contact between Moon and shadow will be at 6:32 p.m. EST (23:32 UT). Along the West Coast of the United States, the eclipse begins during daylight and before the Moon rises. Viewer’s there will see a portion of the event – what’s visible after the sun goes down and the Moon comes up.
The eclipse will peak at 8:47 p.m. EST and will end at 11:01 p.m. EST. Various portions of the event will be visible to half of the world, including the Americas, Europe, Africa and Central Asia.