Exactly full at 3 a.m. EDT Monday, March 25, the Full Worm Moon, the first full moon of spring, will undergo a penumbral lunar eclipse in the early morning hours of March 25. This is a celestial prelude to the BIG event just two weeks later, the eclipse of the sun by the NEW Moon on April 8.
Here are the details of this challenging-to-see shading of the moon as provided by space.com:
- The continents of North and South America are in the best position to see this lunar eclipse, as it occurs high in their sky while the night of March 24 transitions to March 25. The moon will take 4 hours and 40 minutes to glide across the pale outer fringe (penumbra) of Earth’s shadow, never reaching the shadow’s dark umbra.
- At the moment of the deepest phase/greatest eclipse (3:12 EDT) the penumbra will reach an extent of 95.8 percent across the lunar disk. Put another way, the lowermost limb of the moon will be 282 miles (453 km) away from the unseen edge of the Earth’s umbra.
- However, penumbral eclipses are rather subtle events that are usually difficult to detect; the shadow is pale. In fact, first contact with the penumbral shadow is all but impossible to detect. But a little over an hour later, those with exceptionally acute perception might be able to detect an ever-so-slight shading of the moon’s lower left limb.
- Roughly for about a half hour on either side of the time of maximum eclipse, at least 70 percent of the moon’s diameter will be immersed in the shadow; a distinct diminution of light corresponding to a “smudged” or “soiled” appearance; a slight grayness on the lower part of the moon should then be fairly plain to see.
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Moon enters penumbra 12:53 a.m. EDT Faint smudge appears 2:38 a.m. EDT Maximum ‘darkest’ eclipse 3:12 a.m. EDT Faint smudge disappears 3:46 a.m. EDT Moon leaves penumbra 5:32 a.m. EDT
Try using binoculars or a telescope to see the eclipse at maximum. You can try photographing the moon with your smartphone or camera.
Keep those binoculars and camera gear handy for the following two sky events, which each require a clear view of the Western horizon free of tall trees and buildings.
On the 24th, watch the Moon rise at sunset in the East and do an about-face 180 degrees to the West to try and see the elusive planet Mercury. Saturday marks its highest point in the sky this year for Northern Hemisphere observers. Use the bright planet Jupiter, easily visible in the West, as a guidepost. Just look to the lower right, about two fist-widths held at arm’s length. Mercury will look like a fairly bright yellowish-golden “star.”
To round out our sky viewing pleasure, there is a difficult-to-see comet low on the West-Northwestern horizon after sunset. Comet 12P/ Pons-Brooks has been brightening and undergoing sporadic outbursts that temporarily increased its brightness which earned it the nickname “Devil Comet.” The comet will be near Jupiter during totality on April 8 and quite possibly visible. Only time will tell, as comets are just like cats — who knows what they will do.
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