Post by andi on Sept 16, 2015 11:04:11 GMT -5
On Sunday night, September 27th, for the fourth time in the last 17 months, the Moon will once again become completely immersed in the Earth’s shadow, resulting in a total lunar eclipse.
As is the case with all lunar eclipses, the region of visibility will encompass more than half of our planet. Nearly a billion people in the Western Hemisphere, nearly a billion and a half for much of Europe and Africa, and perhaps another half billion in Western Asia, will be able to watch as the full Harvest Moon becomes a shadow of its former self and morphs into a glowing coppery ball.
It will also be the biggest full Moon of 2015, since on the very same day, the Moon will also be at perigee — its closest point to the Earth at 221,753 miles (356,877 km) — making it a so-called “supermoon.”
Visibility Zone
Almost everyone in the Americas and Western Europe will have a beautiful view of this eclipse. The Moon will be high in a dark evening sky as viewed from most of the United States and Canada while most people are still awake and about. The only problematic area will be in the western quarter of the United States and west-central Canada, where the first partial stage of the eclipse will already be under way when the Moon rises and the Sun sets on Sunday evening. But if you have an open view low to the east, even this situation will only add to the drama, for as twilight fades, these far-westerners will see the shadow-bitten Moon coming into stark view low above the landscape. And by late twilight, observers will have a fine view of the totally eclipsed lunar disk glowing red and dim low in the eastern sky.
Alaskans will also see the Moon rise during the eclipse; in fact, much of eastern Alaska will see the Moon rise while completely immersed in the Earth’s shadow. For Hawaiians, moonrise unfortunately come after the end of totality, with the Moon gradually ascending the sky and its gradual emergence from the shadow readily visible. Western Europe and Africa also will get a good view of the eclipse, but at a less convenient time: before dawn on Monday morning, September 28.
farmersalmanac.com/astronomy/2015/09/14/a-total-eclipse-of-the-full-harvest-supermoon/