05-15-2003, 11:23 AM
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#1 (permalink)
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Insane
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Lunar Eclipse Tonight
Just so everyone knows about it; it should be pretty sweet.
Quote:
Taken from http://www.astronomy.com/home.asp
On the American evening of May 15, totality begins at 11:14 p.m. EDT, although the action starts well before that. The partial phase, when the moon first dips into Earth's dark umbral shadow, begins at 10:03 p.m. EDT. After 11:40 p.m. EDT, when the moon reaches mid-eclipse and lies deepest in the shadow, the stages play out in reverse. Totality ends at 12:07 a.m. EDT, and the partial phase wraps up at 1:18 a.m. EDT.
At the moon's distance, Earth's shadow has a diameter more than twice that of our satellite. The moon passes north of the shadow's center during this eclipse. This results in a darker southern limb, probably a deep red color, compared with the northern limb, more likely to be a bright orange/yellow.
The entire eclipse can be seen from South America and eastern North America. The moon rises already in partial eclipse for the western half of the United States and rises during totality in Washington state. The United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Spain, and Portugal will see the moon set shortly after totality ends (on the morning of May 16), while countries farther east will miss most or all of the eclipse.
Two weeks later, on May 31, the new moon casts its shadow on Earth, causing a solar eclipse. Because the moon lies close to apogee, its farthest point from Earth, it can't fully cover the sun. The result: an annular eclipse, in which a ring of sunlight remains around the moon. The annular phase can be seen from a limited area at far northern latitudes, including northern Scotland, Iceland, and parts of Greenland. Remember never to look directly at the sun without proper eye protection
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Go see it. |
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