The partial eclipse takes place next week on the morning of Nov. 19
The longest partial lunar eclipse of the century is due to take place next week between Nov. 18 and. 19, and the gorgeous phenomenon will be visible in all 50 U.S. states.
NASA forecasts that the almost-total eclipse of the Micro Beaver Full Moon will last around 3 hours, 28 minutes and 23 seconds — beginning at approximately 2:19 a.m. EST (7:19 a.m. UTC); reaching its maximum around 4 a.m. EST (9 a.m. UTC); and ending at 5:47 a.m. EST (10:47 a.m. UTC). The Micro Beaver moon is so named because it occurs when the moon is at the farthest point from Earth and in the lead-up to beaver-trapping season.
The partial lunar eclipse, when Earth's shadow covers 97% of the full moon, will be the longest of the century by far, dwarfing the duration of the longest total lunar eclipse this century, which took place in 2018 and stretched to 1 hour and 43 minutes. The forthcoming eclipse will also be the longest partial lunar eclipse in 580 years, according to the Holcomb Observatory at Butler University, Indiana.
Lunar eclipses happen when Earth slides between the moon and the sun, so that our planet's shadow eclipses or "falls on" the moon. The shadow can block all, or in the case of a partial eclipse most, of the sun's light and paint the moon a dark, rusty red.
This reddening of the moon happens because light from the sun, despite being directly blocked by Earth's umbra, or the darkest part of its shadow, bends around our planet and travels through our atmosphere to reach the moon. Earth's atmosphere filters out shorter, bluer wavelengths of light and allows red and orange wavelengths through, Live Science previously reported. After these red and orange wavelengths pass through Earth’s atmosphere they continue traveling to the moon, bathing it in deep, mahogany-red light.
To get exact eclipse timings for your location, you can visit timeanddate.com. The eclipse will be visible from North America and the Pacific Ocean, Alaska, Western Europe, eastern Australia, New Zealand and Japan. Though the early stages of the eclipse occur before moonrise in eastern Asia, Australia and New Zealand, eclipse-watchers in these regions will be able to see the eclipse as it reaches its maximum. Conversely, viewers in South America and Western Europe will see the moon set before the eclipse is at its peak.
Unfortunately, none of the eclipse will be visible from Africa, the Middle East or western Asia. Other areas may find clouds blocking the view of the moon, so checking weather reports ahead of a planned viewing is a must.
If you happen to miss this one, fear not, lunar eclipses tend to happen twice a year, and there will be a full lunar eclipse between May 15 and 16, 2022, followed by another one between Nov. 7 and 8, later that year, according to timeanddate.com.
Quelle: CS
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Update: 16.11.2021
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Starwatch: an ‘almost total’ eclipse of the moon
People in the Americas and Pacific best placed to view lunar event from start to finish
The moon above Suva in Fiji during a total lunar eclipse in May 2021. Photograph: Leon Lord
his week, a full moon occurs on 18-19 November, and for some around the world it will be an “almost total” lunar eclipse. A lunar eclipse occurs at full moon, when the moon travels directly behind the Earth and so crosses through our planet’s shadow. More than 97% of the moon’s disc will be in the darkest part of Earth’s shadow, known as the umbra.
The eclipse begins at 6.02 GMT, when the moon’s western limb touches the outer edge of the Earth’s shadow. This edge does not block out all the sunlight, and is known as the penumbra. It produces a subtle dimming effect that is easily overlooked. Contact with the umbra takes place just before 7.19 GMT, and will cause a distinct shadow to begin crossing the lunar disc. The midpoint of the eclipse, the almost total phase, occurs at 9.03 GMT. The moon then leaves the umbra at 10.47 GMT, and the penumbra just before 12.04 GMT.
Visibility from the UK is not great, with the moon setting at 7.24 GMT. From the Americas and the Pacific, however, much if not all of the eclipse will be visible. East Asia will see the middle of the eclipse, and Australia will catch the final penumbral phase.
Quelle: The Guardian
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Update: 18.11.2021
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A NEAR-MISS TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE
A near-total lunar eclipse will be widely visible across North America on the night of November 18–19. Dress warmly and go for it!
The partially eclipsed Moon sets behind a dawn-tinged North Sister peak in the Three Sisters Mountains in Oregon during the May 26, 2021, lunar eclipse. Details: Canon SL1, 75-300 mm lens, 1/10 second at f/8, ISO 400. Alan Gillespie
The deep partial lunar eclipse on the night of November 18–19 should be spectacular. With 97% of the full Beaver Moon in Earth's shadow at mid-eclipse, we'll witness nearly all the good stuff associated with a total eclipse, including the Moon's radical color change from bone white to tangerine. The only thing we won't see is totality. At maximum eclipse, a silvery 0.7 arcminutes of the Moon's southern limb will extend beyond the umbra.
Lucky for us, full Moon occurs 1.7 days before apogee, when the Moon is farthest from Earth in its elliptical orbit. This shrinks its apparent size, so more of it squeezes inside the umbra than normal. The increased distance also means the Moon moves more slowly in its orbit. In fact, this will be the longest partial lunar eclipse since Feb. 18, 1440 — more than 6 hours from start to finish. And we won't get a longer one until Feb. 8, 2669!
Lunar eclipses occur at full Moon, when the Moon passes directly behind the Earth into its shadow. If the Earth were airless, the Moon would look completely black during a total lunar eclipse. But the atmosphere refracts reddened sunlight grazing the edge of the planet into the Earth's umbra, coloring the lunar disk during totality. (Not shown to scale.) Starry Night with additions by Bob King
Why isn't every full Moon an eclipse? The Moon’s orbit around Earth is tilted a small amount, 5.14°, compared to the plane of Earth’s orbit around the Sun (exaggerated in the figure for clarity). That means that most times, as the Moon orbits Earth, it evades Earth’s shadow — and when the Moon is opposite the Sun, we see it as a full Moon on Earth, its whole disk shining. However, roughly twice a year, the full phase of the Moon coincides with a node, where the Moon’s orbital plane crosses Earth’s orbital plane around the Sun. Depending on how close the node is to the full Moon, we may see a partial or total lunar eclipse at those times. Use the slider to see how the setup changes. Sky & Telescope
As is true with all lunar eclipses, half the planet can see one or more aspects of the event — anywhere the Moon is above the horizon. This includes the Americas, northern Europe, eastern Asia, Australia, and the Pacific. Virtually the entire show will be visible across North America. Click here for a coverage map. Two weeks and a half-orbit later on December 4th, the Moon will totally eclipse the Sun from the Southern Ocean and Antarctica.
Amateur astronomer Christian Fröschlin of the Netherlands captured the flash of a meteoroid impact during the January 20, 2019, total lunar eclipse. Christian Fröschlin
Why does the Moon turn red? When the Moon falls in Earth’s shadow, not all sunlight is blocked. A sliver of light will travel through Earth’s atmosphere, refracting — or bending — toward the Moon to then reflect off its surface. For the same reason that the sky is blue, the blue wavelengths of sunlight are scattered in Earth’s atmosphere. Longer, redder wavelengths can pass through without scattering — this is the same phenomenon that turns the Sun red when it’s near the horizon. These photons are the ones that make it through to shine on the Moon. In a sense, the Moon is seeing all of Earth’s sunrises and sunsets all at once. Rollover the icons to see mid-eclipse views from Earth and from the Moon. Click here for a high-resolution, annotated diagram. Sky & Telescope
Coincidentally, the eclipse happens very close to the maximum of the Leonid meteor showerwhich peaks on November 17–18, raising the possibility of seeing or recording a Leonid meteor impact on the darkened Moon. While it's an off-year for the shower with a maximum of only about 15 meteors per hour, be alert to the possibility. If you have a second telescope to shoot video for a half-hour or so around mid-eclipse, it may be worth a shot (see, e.g., the Pro-Am Conjunction column in the November issue of Sky & Telescope). Several observers recorded a split-second meteor impact flash during the total eclipse of January 20, 2019.
For other ways amateurs can contribute valuable observations during the eclipse check out Useful Projects for a Lunar Eclipse by Sky & Telescope's Roger Sinnott.
ECLIPSE PHASES BY TIME ZONE
November 18–19, 2021
AST
EST
CST
MST
PST
AKST
HST
Penumbra first visible?
2:45 a.m.
1:45 a.m.
12:45 a.m.
11:45 p.m.
10:45 p.m.
9:45 p.m.
8:45 p.m.
Partial eclipse begins
3:18 a.m.
2:18 a.m.
1:18 a.m.
12:18 a.m.
11:18 p.m.
10:18 p.m.
9:18 p.m.
Mid-eclipse
5:03 a.m.
4:03 a.m.
3:03 a.m.
2:03 a.m.
1:03 a.m.
12:03 a.m.
11:03 p.m.
Partial eclipse ends
6:47 a.m.
5:47 a.m.
4:47 a.m.
3:47 a.m.
2:47 a.m.
1:47 a.m.
12:47 a.m.
Penumbra last visible?
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6:35 a.m.
5:35 a.m.
4:35 a.m.
3:35 a.m.
2:35 a.m.
1:35 a.m.
November is often cloudy and cold. For big events like eclipses I keep track of the weather using GOES-East satellite imagery, which provides excellent coverage of the eastern two-thirds of the U.S., southern Canada, and Central America. There's also a GOES-West version.
When you click either link above it defaults to a visible-wavelength image. For night use you'll need infrared imagery to see and track clouds. Click the Choose bar drop-down menu and select Channel 7. Clicking anywhere on the map will pop up an enlarged view of that region. When you back-arrow to wide-view mode, controls let you increase image size or create an animated loop to discern trends in cloud movement.
ECLIPSE PHOTO GUIDE
ISO 800
f/2.8
f/4
f/5.6
f/8
No eclipse
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1/4000
Penumbral eclipse
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1/4000
1/2000
Partial eclipse (30% covered)
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1/4000
1/2000
1/1000
Partial eclipse (60% covered)
1/4000
1/2000
1/1000
1/500
Partial eclipse (90% covered)
1/1000
1/500
1/250
1/125
Total eclipse (bright)
1/15
1/8
1/4
1/2
Total eclipse (dark)
1 sec.
2 sec.
4 sec.
8 sec.
Total eclipse (very dark)
4 sec.
8 sec.
15 sec.
30 sec.
This exposure guide is set for ISO 800, a speed suitable for all aspects of a lunar eclipse. The times will yield well-exposed images of the bright or fully eclipsed Moon, with the darkened portion faintly visible. Increasing times will record more shadow color but overexpose the bright part. Use a tripod for longer exposures. Bob King
The eclipsed Moon and Pleiades cluster will pair up during the eclipse. This map shows them at mid-eclipse (3:03 a.m. CST) when the distance from the southern lunar limb to the cluster's northern border will be about 6.8°. Bob King
November's near-totally eclipsed Moon will accompany the Pleiades, one of the brightest and prettiest star clusters in the heavens. At mid-eclipse, just 6.5° separate the two, making for an excellent picture opportunity. Try photographing the scene when the sky is darkest around mid-eclipse. Almost any lens will do depending on what, if any, foreground you include. I recommend a 100- to 200-mm telephoto to capture a bit more detail. With a full-frame sensor, a 100-mm lens has a field of view of 20.4° × 13.7°; a 200-mm lens, 10.3° × 6.9°.
November's lunar eclipse will be very close to total. Observers across North America should have excellent views of the dimming Moon as it crosses Earth's two-part shadow. At mid-eclipse, only the Moon's "little toe" will poke out from the umbra. Times are CST. Gregg Dinderman, Sky & Telescope
SLIPPING INTO SHADOWLAND
I plan to share the eclipse with a friend. We'll be observing with everything we've got: naked eyeballs, binoculars, and telescopes. Each offers a unique perspective, and a lunar eclipse is long enough to employ them all. The naked eye works best in experiencing the transformation of the night from harsh moonlight and star-poor skies to dark quietude under the cover of umbral darkness. This has always been one of my favorite aspects of lunar eclipses. Without sunlight the Moon looks small and less substantial, as if robbed of its superpowers.
Earth's umbra at the Moon's distance spans about 9,000 kilometers or 1.3°, which is 2.6 times the diameter of the Moon. Given the Moon's orbital tilt of 5.1° it's easy to see why eclipses don't happen every full Moon — crossing the shadow is like hitting a bull's-eye. Bob King
Binoculars enhance and intensify the Moon's color transformation and add a third dimension, giving the ruddy globe the appearance of being suspended among the stars. A telescope clearly shows the shadow's blurry edge, softened by Earth's atmosphere, as well as other more subtle colors like smoky yellows, shades of tea, and even pale blue (caused by absorption of red light by the ozone layer). It's also great fun to watch the major craters succumb in succession to the encroaching shadow. Imagine the scene from the Moon, standing atop Tycho's central peak watching the Earth slowly cover the Sun. Wow!
Make a side trip to Comet Leonard when the sky is darkest. The comet lies in Coma Berenices just over the border from Canes Venatici. Stars are plotted to magnitude 10 and north is up. Stellarium
Consider a side trip to Comet Leonard at mid-eclipse for a special surprise. That morning, the comet will appear about 20′ south-southwest of the 10th-magnitude galaxy NGC 4395 and will glow around magnitude 9. You might even glimpse it in 50-mm binoculars. But not for long! The Moon has places to go and soon enough departs the valley of shadow to flood the sky with light again.
The slow rhythm of a lunar eclipse provides an opportunity to stop, catch our breath, and fall in line with the three most significant cosmic bodies in our life.
