A couple of days next month are going to be spectacular for astronomy fans.
Overnight on July 27, people in the Eastern Hemisphere will get to experience the longest lunar eclipse of this century. Not your usual eclipse either, itĄŻll also be blood red.
Astronomers predict the eclipse will last for an hour and 43 minutes, with the partial eclipse carrying on over 3 hours and 55 minutes. To refresh your memory, a lunar eclipse is when the Sun, Earth, and Moon align, and the Earth casts a shadow over the Moon.
This eclipse in particular will last so long because the will pass directly into the darkest part of the EarthĄŻs shadow, called the umbra. This will also give it a reddish brown tinge, which is why itĄŻs called a blood moon.
Additionally, next monthĄŻs full moon eclipse is happening the same time as it hits its apogee, the furthest point from Earth in its orbit. Because of this, it will also take more time to pass out of EarthĄŻs shadow.?
In India, the penumbral eclipse will begin at about 11:54 pm. The total eclipse should occur at around 1 am on July 28, when the moon will be fully red. The maximum eclipse will be at about 1:52 am, with the eclipse ending at 2:43 am.