While perhaps not as dramatic as a Solar Eclipse, there will be a Lunar eclipse visible in Texas on early Tuesday morning, August 28th at approximately 5:15am. The eclipse will actually begin about an hour earlier.
What is a Lunar Eclipse?
A Lunar Eclipse is when the Earth comes directly in between the Full Moon and the Sun, causing the Moon to be in the Earth’s shadow.
On the night of a Lunar Eclipse, the moon rises full and beautiful, then it starts to change. At first it is quite subtle. But then, every so slowly, the moon dims, and then, it disappears.
Can you imagine how frightened this must have been for our ancestors? The sky was an important part of their daily, monthly and seasonal lives. They told time by the daily passing of the Sun, spoke of a Fortnight, which was the time between a new moon and a full moon, and the stars marked the passing of seasons. The skies were a dependable part of their lives, except for an eclipse. And then, chaos reigned, our ancestors prayed and begged for the Moon to be returned to the sky.
Eclipses have even influenced history, and even today there are those who still attach ancient superstitions to an eclipse. Today we know what causes lunar eclipses. And although we know how the magic works, but we can still appreciate the beauty.
There are actually several type of lunar eclipses-total, partial and penumbral. The upcoming eclipse is the best kind, a total lunar eclipse. This kind can only take place when the Earth passes directly in front of a full Moon, thus casting its shadow on the Moon’s surface.
Unlike solar eclipses, lunar eclipses are perfectly safe to view without eye protection.
BEST TIMES
We’re lucky, if you don’t mind the times. Due to rotations, not all eclipses are visible here in Texas, but this one will be. The main part of the eclipse begins at 3:51 a.m. when the moon first contacts the darker, inner part of Earth’s shadow, called the umbra. The left side of the moon will start to darken.
Total eclipse will be from 4:52 a.m. until 6:22 a.m. The moon exits the umbra at 7:24 a.m.
The totally eclipsed moon, instead of looking dark black, often looks red. This effect is due to the red part of sunlight refracting through the Earth’s atmosphere and striking the moon. No two eclipses are ever the same though.
UPDATE: Yes, we did get up to take a look at the peak of the full eclipse. It was pretty cool. The moon wasn’t completely dark as some light still reaches it around the edges of the Earth. The light is refracted passing through our atmosphere scattering blue light, which is why the sky is blue, but sending reddish light onto the moon.
NEXT LUNAR ECLIPSE
Ok, if this eclipse was too early for you to get out of bed, the next total lunar eclipse occurs Feb. 21, 2008, and is expected to be easily visible from North Texas and at a much better time!
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