First total lunar eclipse of the year

This year, you can see two total lunar eclipses. The first total lunar eclipse of the year is visible on the 15th and 16th of May. The second total lunar eclipse will take place on 8 November.

It is Supermoon as it appears bigger. Moreover, it is red in colour. Hence, it is Blood Moon. That means the moon will emit a reddish blue colour before the total eclipse. Hence, it is known as Blood Moon.

The reason for the visibility of orange and red colours is due to the scattering of the blue and green light when the Sun’s rays reach the Earth.

Though people are curious to see the eclipse, it is not visible in all countries, especially in India as per NASA. However, NASA decided to broadcast the event. So, Indians can watch it on the website of NASA, social media channels and its YouTube channel.

CNN reported that the first total lunar eclipse of the year would begin began at 10: 27 pm (EST) on Sunday, which is 7:57 am (IST) on Monday. It would end at 12: 53 am (EST), i.e. 10:15 am (IST). The total phase would last for 1 hour and 25 minutes, while the partial phase would be around two hours.  The Moon would almost disappear for a few minutes during the total eclipse.

The total lunar eclipse would begin at 7:02 am (IST) on 16 May, and the partial phase would begin at 7:57 am when the Moon began entering the umbra of the Earth. It would end at 12:20 pm.

But, the lunar eclipse would not be visible in India. It would be visible in most parts of the southern hemisphere, including South America. Besides, it is visible in eastern parts of the United States, Central and most parts of North America, Africa, and western Europe.

Image by dMz from Pixabay (Free for commercial use)

Image Reference: https://pixabay.com/photos/blood-moon-moon-night-moonlight-3573267/