Total lunar eclipse 2018 or blood moon: See the dark side of the moon
A blood-red moon dazzled star gazers across much of the world on July 27-28 when it moved into Earth’s shadow for the longest lunar eclipse of the 21st Century.
From the Cape of Good Hope to the Middle East, and from the Kremlin to Sydney Harbour, thousands of people turned their eyes to the stars to watch the moon, which turned dark before shining orange, brown and crimson in the shadow.
The total eclipse lasted 1 hour, 42 minutes and 57 seconds, though a partial eclipse preceded and follows, meaning the moon will spend a total of nearly 4 hours in the Earth’s umbral shadow, according to NASA.
The fullest eclipse was visible from Europe, Russia, Africa, the Middle East, and much of Asia and Australia though clouds blocked out the moon in some places.
…BASICS OF ECLIPSE..FOR UPSC/UKPSC/UPPSC…….………………………………………………………..An eclipse takes place when one heavenly body such as a moon or planet moves into the shadow of another heavenly body. There are two types of eclipses on Earth: an eclipse of the moon and an eclipse of the sun.
What Is a Lunar Eclipse?
The moon moves in an orbit around Earth, and at the same time, Earth orbits the sun. Sometimes Earth moves between the sun and the moon. When this happens, Earth blocks the sunlight that normally is reflected by the moon. (This sunlight is what causes the moon to shine.) Instead of light hitting the moon’s surface, Earth’s shadow falls on it. This is an eclipse of the moon — a lunar eclipse. A lunar eclipse can occur only when the moon is full.
A lunar eclipse can be seen from Earth at night. There are two types of lunar eclipses: total lunar eclipses and partial lunar eclipses.
A total lunar eclipse occurs when the moon and the sun are on exact opposite sides of Earth. Although the moon is in Earth’s shadow, some sunlight reaches the moon. The sunlight passes through Earth’s atmosphere, which causes Earth’s atmosphere to filter out most of the blue light. This makes the moon appear red to people on Earth.
A partial lunar eclipse happens when only a part of the moon enters Earth’s shadow. In a partial eclipse, Earth’s shadow appears very dark on the side of the moon facing Earth. What people see from Earth during a partial lunar eclipse depends on how the sun, Earth and moon are lined up.
A lunar eclipse usually lasts for a few hours. At least two partial lunar eclipses happen every year, but total lunar eclipses are rare. It is safe to look at a lunar eclipse.
What Is a Solar Eclipse?
Sometimes when the moon orbits Earth, it moves between the sun and Earth. When this happens, the moon blocks the light of the sun from reaching Earth. This causes an eclipse of the sun, or solar eclipse. During a solar eclipse, the moon casts a shadow onto Earth.
There are three types of solar eclipses.
The first is a total solar eclipse. A total solar eclipse is only visible from a small area on Earth. The people who see the total eclipse are in the center of the moon’s shadow when it hits Earth. The sky becomes very dark, as if it were night. For a total eclipse to take place, the sun, moon and Earth must be in a direct line.
The second type of solar eclipse is a partial solar eclipse. This happens when the sun, moon and Earth are not exactly lined up. The sun appears to have a dark shadow on only a small part of its surface.
The third type is an annular (ANN you ler) solar eclipse. An annular eclipse happens when the moon is farthest from Earth. Because the moon is farther away from Earth, it seems smaller. It does not block the entire view of the sun. The moon in front of the sun looks like a dark disk on top of a larger sun-colored disk. This creates what looks like a ring around the moon.
During a solar eclipse, the moon casts two shadows on Earth. The first shadow is called the umbra (UM bruh). This shadow gets smaller as it reaches Earth. It is the dark center of the moon’s shadow. The second shadow is called the penumbra (pe NUM bruh). The penumbra gets larger as it reaches Earth. People standing in the penumbra will see a partial eclipse. People standing in the umbra will see a total eclipse.
Solar eclipses happen once every 18 months. Unlike lunar eclipses, solar eclipses only last for a few minutes
Look up to the skies late on July 27 for a total lunar eclipse.
Breakthrough Science Society is organising a public seminar at SJR Women’s college at Rajajinagar on Friday from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. The lecture will be delivered by Professor Jayant Murthy, senior astrophysicist in the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, on ‘walking through the ages of the moon’. He will be speaking about the relevance of a lunar eclipse. Arrangement have been made to view the astronomical event.
The Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium is setting up several telescopes on its premises. People can view the moon between 11.30 p.m. and 3 a.m. depending on conditions in the sky.
So far, 2018 has been a year filled with several rare celestial experiences: we got to witness rare lunar events in the form of super moon, blue moon and a total lunar eclipse in January.
Pramod G. Galgali, Director, Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium, said, “Unlike solar eclipses, lunar eclipses can be witnessed without any special equipment. These lunar events, which occur when the moon passes into Earth’s shadow, are safe to view directly with the naked eye, telescopes or binoculars.”
Some schools are planning to arrange special viewings for its students. The Mahila Seva Samaj School, in association with Aryabhata Planetarium, will be setting up a high-end telescope in the playground to view the spectacular blood moon. “Parents can accompany children to view the eclipse. We had sent a circular regarding this a while ago, and there has been a good response,” said Shree S. Iyengar, Head Mistress of the school.
FAQs
What is special about the blood moon?
This will be the longest lunar eclipse of the century. The total lunar eclipse would last for one hour and 43 minutes while partial eclipses, which would precede and follow the total eclipse, would last more than an hour. The partial eclipse of the moon will start at 11.54 p.m. on July 27. The total eclipse would begin at 1 a.m. on July 28. The moon will be the darkest at 1.52 a.m. on July 28 and would continue till 2.43 a.m. It will remain partially eclipsed till 3.49 a.m. of July 28. The moon will have a reddish hue, a phenomenon popularly referred to as a blood moon.
How can one watch the lunar eclipse?
Locate a high-rise building or any open space from where the moon rise will be clearly visible.
Can anybody watch the phenomenon?
Yes. There is no scientific evidence of any harmful rays or increase in microbial activity during eclipses. It is absolutely safe to eat, drink water and continue doing our normal activities during eclipses.