Behind the Headlines

By Stephanie Ariganello; stephaniea@monroenews.com

Since we have a slight history of posting NASA-like things on this blog, I thought I would continue the tradition.

The moon will disappear tonight. But don’t be alarmed, it’s just doing what it occasionally does – taking a reprieve from watching over us humans while passing through the shadow of the earth. It could be quite spectacular, says NASA.

According to NASA, during a total lunar eclipse, “the Moon’s disk can take on a dramatically colorful appearance from bright orange to blood red to dark brown and (rarely) very dark gray.”
An eclipse of the moon can only take place during the full moon phase, and only if the moon passes through some portion of Earth’s shadow. The shadow is composed of two cone-shaped parts, one nested inside the other. The outer shadow, or penumbra, is a zone where Earth blocks some (but not all) of the Sun’s rays. In contrast, the inner shadow or umbra is a region where Earth blocks all direct sunlight from reaching the Moon.
Tonight’s eclipse will last three hours and 26 minutes, starting at 8:43 p.m., hitting mid-eclipse at 10:26 p.m. and concluding at 12:09. The actual total block out of the moon will begin at 10:01 and will last until 10:51 p.m.
There were two total lunar eclipses visible from the continental U.S. last year – one on March 3 and the other on Aug. 28. North Americans will have their next opportunity to see a total lunar eclipse on Dec. 21, 2010.

Partial Eclipse Begins: 08:43 pm
Total Eclipse Begins: 10:01 pm
Mid-Eclipse: 10:26 pm
Total Eclipse Ends: 10:51 pm
Partial Eclipse Ends: 12:09 am

For more information visit http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov