Rare Supermoon Total Eclipse Coming This Month

Look up to the night sky Sunday night, September 27^th, and watch a type of outer space light show that hasn’t happened in more than 30 years—a supermoon combined with a total lunar eclipse.

The moon will pass through the earth’s shadow for more than an hour. The moon will remain dimly visible and have a red or copper hue during the eclipse. For that short time it will be called a blood moon because of its brief color change.

During the full eclipse, the moon will be at its perigee—the closest point it passes near the earth during its oval orbit. That’s when the moon will appear 14% larger to the naked eye and be called a supermoon. A total lunar eclipse and a supermoon are separate occurrences that rarely occur together. This won’t happen again until 2033.

NASA engineers issued a report pinpointing the time of the lunar eclipse. The larger-than-normal supermoon will begin to dim at 8:11 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The earth’s shadow will fall across the moon at 9:07 p.m. At 10:11 p.m. EDT the blood moon will be in total eclipse for 12 minutes. The NASA report describes the moon as having a ghostly copper color until it emerges from the earth’s shadow.

All 72 minutes of the celestial event will be visible in eastern and central North America, all of South America and parts of Western Europe.

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), NASA’s star gazing satellite, will record every second of the eclipse. Scientists can use the LRO to study moon measurements, such as surface temperatures, that are not easily available during the normal phases of the moon.

Star observers have studied the movement of the moon since ancient times. Many cultures attached superstitions to the moon’s temporary disappearances during eclipses. A few of those irrational fears included stories that the moon was attacked by hungry demons or an angry sun. Some stories were based on the sun and moon quarrelling. Some modern stories about moon eclipses describe them as omens of death and worldwide destruction.

One superstition all of us could use is to keep our fingers crossed that the night sky will be clear on Sunday. That way we can get a view of the supermoon eclipse. Otherwise we’ll have to wait until 2033 when it happens again.

Thanks for reading this blog. Check back here in a week for another interesting entry. See my website at www.joevlatino.com