Astronomers and amateur skywatchers will witness the longest lunar eclipse of this century this month. In two weeks from now, on November 19 (Karthik Purnima), Earth will pass between the Sun and the Moon, forming a shadow on the Moon’s surface. NASA said the total lunar eclipse will peak after 1:30 p.m., when Earth will cover 97 percent of the full moon from the Sun’s rays. During this spectacular celestial event, the Moon will turn red in colour. It will be visible in some parts of India.
Lunar eclipse is visible only in places where Moon is above the horizon. People from northeastern states of India including Assam and Arunachal Pradesh should be able to watch this program. People in North America would be best positioned to watch the entire event. All 50 US states and Mexico will be able to see it. It will also be visible in Australia, East Asia, Northern Europe and the Pacific Ocean region.
NASA said that the lunar eclipse will last for 3 hours, 28 minutes and 23 seconds, which will be for a long time More than any other eclipse in 100 years between 2001 and 2100. NASA Said that there will be a total of 228 lunar eclipses on Earth in the 21st century. Mostly, there will be two lunar eclipses in a month, but there can be three eclipses as well.
Those who are unable to watch the eclipse in their areas can watch the livestream of the event below:
Normally, the face of the Moon is illuminated by sunlight reflecting off its surface. But during a lunar eclipse the Moon, Sun and Earth come in a straight line. The Earth blocks the sunlight from reaching the Moon and thus, the lunar object appears to be consumed by the Earth. During a total lunar eclipse, 100 percent of the Moon is covered by Earth’s cone-shaped shadow, called the garbha.
The next eclipse will take place on 16 May 2022.
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