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Last Total Lunar Eclipse Until 2010
by
findingDulcinea Staff
Occurring only during a full moon, total lunar eclipses are relatively rare. Tonight's will last about three and a half hours.
30-Second Summary
Tonight’s total lunar eclipse will begin at approximately 8:43 p.m. EST, and end at about 12:09 a.m. on Thursday. The phenomenon will not recur until 2010.
Weather permitting, the event will be visible from all over the planet except South and East Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Oceania and parts of the Middle East.
New Scientist reports that the most impressive phase of the eclipse will happen between about 10:01 and 10:51 p.m. EST, “when the Earth's shadow will completely cover the Moon.”
According to the NASA-recommended Web site Mr. Eclipse, a total lunar eclipse happens when the full moon “passes through some portion of the Earth’s shadow," when the Earth comes between the Sun and the Moon.
The site also states that about 35 percent of lunar eclipses are total eclipses. When one occurs, everyone on the night-side of the Earth can see the moon change colors as it turns orange, red, brown and occasionally a dark grey.
Weather permitting, the event will be visible from all over the planet except South and East Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Oceania and parts of the Middle East.
New Scientist reports that the most impressive phase of the eclipse will happen between about 10:01 and 10:51 p.m. EST, “when the Earth's shadow will completely cover the Moon.”
According to the NASA-recommended Web site Mr. Eclipse, a total lunar eclipse happens when the full moon “passes through some portion of the Earth’s shadow," when the Earth comes between the Sun and the Moon.
The site also states that about 35 percent of lunar eclipses are total eclipses. When one occurs, everyone on the night-side of the Earth can see the moon change colors as it turns orange, red, brown and occasionally a dark grey.
Headline Link: ‘Moon Set for Last Total Eclipse Until 2010’
Tonight, Feb. 20, Earth will see its last total eclipse until December 2010. Weather permitting, the eclipse will be visible from all locations except South and East Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Oceania and parts of the Middle East.
Source: New Scientist
Background: Time zone conversion, and what is an eclipse?
The Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) Web site offers a conversion chart for GMT and other time zones so users can determine what time the eclipse will happen in their area.
Source: Greenwich Mean Time
Mr. Eclipse, a NASA-recommended Web site, explains that a total lunar eclipse happens during a full moon “only if the Moon passes through some portion of Earth's shadow … the inner or umbral shadow is a region where the Earth blocks all direct sunlight from reaching the Moon.”
Source: Mr. Eclipse
Reference: NASA
The NASA Eclipse Homepage explains the eclipse that will occur tonight, covering the times, phases and visibility of the event.
Source: NASA Eclipse Homepage
The dominant theory explaining the creation of the Moon holds it that a cataclysmic collision between the Earth and a planet-sized body tore out a chunk of rock from our planet and put it into orbit. In 2001, National Geographic reported that the size of the object that hit the Earth may have been substantially smaller than previously thought.
Source: National Geographic
NinePlanets.org dedicates a section of its Web site to the Earth’s only natural satellite.
Source: NicePlanets.org
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