Image from the last Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon, which occurred on 2022 May 15; image taken from Irvine, California. (Image Sources: Wikipedia.org, By Sergei Mutovkin from Irvine, California, United States - Full Eclipse of the Moon as seen in from Irvine, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=118047426)
By
Glenn A. Walsh
Reporting
for SpaceWatchtower
A
Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon occurs early Tuesday
morning, well visible in North America (including Alaska and Hawaii),
parts of northern and eastern Europe, Asia, and Australia, as well as
much of South America, Arctic region, Antarctica, and from the
Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans, weather-permitting. Live-stream
web-casts of the event will be available, for areas of the world
where the Eclipse is not visible, or where the weather is not
amenable to viewing the Eclipse.
A
Lunar Eclipse / Eclipse of the Moon is the only category of Eclipses
which is safe to view with the unaided eyes (one-power), binoculars,
and a telescope. While binoculars or a telescope can assist in seeing
lunar details, a good view of such an Eclipse can be had by just
using the unaided eyes.
Of course, a Lunar Eclipse / Eclipse of the Moon can only be observed, if the Moon has risen at a certain locale, weather-permitting. Near the end of this blog-post is an Internet link to a map(s) showing where such an Eclipse can be observed, and whether the entire Eclipse can be observed, or if only a portion of the Eclipse can be observed. Also, near the end of this blog-post is an Internet link to a U.S. Naval Observatory web-page, where you can plug-in your location to determine the times of moonrise and moonset.
Live-stream
Web-casts of this Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon
will be available for observers not in a region where the Eclipse is
visible in the sky, or where weather conditions make such an
observation impossible (Internet links to these Live-stream Web-casts
near the end of this blog-post).
A
Lunar Eclipse / Eclipse of the Moon occurs when the orbit of the Moon
brings our natural satellite into the Earth's shadow (shadow caused
by the Earth completely blocking light from the Sun). The Earth's
shadow, extending into Outer Space from the dark or night side of
Earth, is divided into two sections: the dim Penumbra or Penumbral
Shadow, which encircles the deeper Umbra or Umbral Shadow.
A
Lunar Eclipse / Eclipse of the Moon always occurs near the time, and
including the time, of a Full Moon. The Moon's orbit is slightly
tilted, so most months at the Primary Moon Phase of Full Moon, the
Moon moves above or below the Earth's shadow, with no Eclipse
occurring.
A
Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon is when the Earth's
deep shadow, or Umbra, completely envelops the Moon. Of course,
"Totality" / Total Phase of a Total Lunar Eclipse / Total
Eclipse of the Moon is the most impressive part of this type of
Eclipse, what most people wait to see.
The
Partial Phases of a Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon,
are when a piece of the Moon seems missing, as the Moon moves farther
into the Earth's main shadow known as the Umbra, or as the Eclipse is
ending and the Moon is further moving out of the Earth's Umbra.
Usually,
a Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon only occurs once
every 2.5 years, approximately, as seen from someplace in the world.
The last two happened on 2021 May 26 and on 2022 May 15 / 16.
However,
the 2022 November 8 Eclipse will be the last Total Lunar Eclipse /
Total Eclipse of the Moon until 2025 March 14. Although, Partial and
Penumbral Lunar Eclipses / Eclipses of the Moon will still occur
before 2025.
All
eclipses come in pairs (a Solar Eclipse / Eclipse of the Sun comes a
couple weeks before, or after, a Lunar Eclipse / Eclipse of the
Moon), sometimes even in threes. In the current case, a Partial Solar
Eclipse / Partial Eclipse of the Sun occurred early on the morning of
2022 October 25. An Internet link to the blog-post regarding the
October 25 Eclipse is located near the end of this blog-post.
When
the Earth's deep shadow, known as the Umbra, falls on only part of
the Moon's surface, this is known as a Partial Lunar Eclipse /
Partial Eclipse of the Moon. This is more easily visible, if you are
in the right location and weather conditions are acceptable.
When
the Earth's dim shadow, known as the Penumbra, falls on the Moon, it
is called a Penumbral Lunar Eclipse / Penumbral Eclipse of the Moon.
Because the Earth's shadow is dim in this case, this type of Eclipse
is difficult to discern.
A
Penumbral Lunar Eclipse / Penumbral Eclipse of the Moon, and the
Penumbral Phases of the Total or Partial Lunar Eclipses / Eclipses of
the Moon, are difficult to see, as the Moon moves into or out of the
Earth's secondary shadow or Penumbra. In this case, one would not see
any chunks or bites taken out of the Moon's disk, as one would see
when the Moon moves into the Umbra shadow during the Partial Phases.
Instead, if your eyes are very good, you may notice a slight dimming
of the light coming from the Moon, as the Moon moves farther into the
Penumbral Shadow.
Although
no direct sunlight reaches the Moon during the Totality phase of a Total Lunar Eclipse /
Total Eclipse of the Moon, the Earth's atmosphere refracts the
sunlight around our planet allowing a portion of the sunlight to
continue to be transmitted to the Moon. However, the refracted light
reaching the Moon is primarily in the yellow, orange, and red
portions of the electromagnetic spectrum (the Earth's atmosphere
filters-out the violet, blue, and green colors), as with orange or
red-tinted sunrises and sunsets (during such a Total Lunar Eclipse /
Total Eclipse of the Moon, a person standing on the side of the Moon
facing Earth could see all Earth sunrises and sunsets simultaneously,
as they viewed the Earth in a Total Solar Eclipse / Total
Eclipse of the Sun --- but, even on the Moon, a person would
need to take strong precautions to ensure their eye-sight is not
damaged by such a view). Hence, it is orange or red light that is
reflected from the Moon back into your eyes during a Total Lunar
Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon.
Again,
particularly during the middle of a Total Lunar Eclipse / Total
Eclipse of the Moon, the Moon will not disappear from view but can be
seen with an orange or reddish tint, what some call "blood red"
(this is sometimes referred to as a “Blood Moon”). If the Earth
had no atmosphere, likely no sunlight would reach the Moon during a
Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon, and there would be
no "Blood Moon;" the Moon would seem to completely
disappear.
Here
are the major stages of this Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of
the Moon –--
Early
Tuesday Morning, 2022 November 8 -
[Eastern
Standard Time (EST) / Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)]
Note:
A Lunar Eclipse / Eclipse of the Moon is the only type of Eclipse
where the times of Eclipse are the same world-wide, when using
Coordinated Universal Time. Everyone on the dark or night side of
Earth can view, at least a portion of, this type of Eclipse in the
sky, weather-permitting.
Penumbral
Eclipse Begins: 3:01:52 a.m. EST / 8:01:52 UTC
Partial
Eclipse Begins: 4:08:49 a.m. EST / 9:08:49 UTC
Total
Eclipse Begins: 5:16:12 a.m. EST / 10:16:12 UTC
Time
of Greatest Eclipse: 5:59:11 a.m. EST / 10:59:11 UTC
Primary
Phase of Full Moon: 6:02 a.m. EST / 11:02 UTC
Total
Eclipse Ends: 6:41:52 a.m. EST / 11:41:52 UTC
Partial
Eclipse Ends: 7:49:24 a.m. EST / 12:49:24 UTC
Penumbral
Eclipse Ends: 8:56:32 a.m. EST / 13:56:32 UTC
At
the time of Greatest Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon
on November 8 at 6:02 a.m. EST / 11:02 UTC, the Moon will be 100
per-cent obscured by the Earth's Umbral Shadow. It may appear dark
with a reddish or orange tint; some refer to this as a “Blood
Moon.” In fact, the Moon's disk actually passes through the axis of
Earth's Umbral Shadow, which means this will be a very deep and dark
Eclipse.
And,
at the time of Greatest Eclipse, the Moon is farther from the Earth
than normal. In fact the Moon reaches the monthly point of apogee, in
the lunar orbit, 5.8 days after the Eclipse. So, the Moon will appear
a wee-bit smaller than it may appear at other times of the month.
During
this Eclipse, the Moon is located in the direction of the
constellations Aries the Ram and Taurus the Bull. A Full Moon can
only lie in front of one or two of three constellations; the third
is Cetus the Whale.
The overall duration of the 2022 November 8 Eclipse is predicted to be 5 hours and 54 minutes. The expectation for the duration of --- Totality: 1 hour, 25.7 minutes (one of the longest Total phases possible); both Partial Phases: 2 hours, 15 minutes; and both Penumbral Phases: 2 hours, 14 minutes.
Aristotle
Discovers World is Round Due, in Part, to Lunar Eclipse / Eclipse of
the Moon
Civilized
society has known that the Earth is not flat, but is round, for about
2500 years. The famous Greek philosopher and academic, Aristotle who
lived between 384 and 322 B.C., used a Lunar Eclipse / Eclipse of the
Moon as one demonstration that the Earth is round.
This
was documented in a book he published around 350 B.C. As he observed
the Earth's shadow pass across the face of the Moon during a Lunar
Eclipse / Eclipse of the Moon, he noticed that the shadow is curved,
which is one of three indications he found that the Earth is round.
One
of the other two indications were the concept that gravity required a
common center for a planetary body such as Earth. He also noticed
that different stars were seen from different locations on our
planet, and some stars cannot be seen from certain locations.
Lunar
Eclipse / Eclipse of the Moon Saves Christopher Columbus & Crew
On
Christopher Columbus' fourth and last voyage to the New World (which
he still believed was part of India or Asia) in 1502, he lost all
four of his ships due to an epidemic of ship-worms eating holes in
the wood planks of his vessels. He had to beach the last two ships on
an island now known as Jamaica on 1503 June 25.
While
waiting for a relief caravel to arrive from Hispaniola (island now
occupied by the Dominican Republic and Haiti), the native Arawak
Indians helped the castaways with food and provisions, in exchange
for trinkets and other goods from the last two ships. However, after
more than six months, the Arawaks got tired of helping the Spaniards,
particularly after half the crew mutinied and robbed and murdered
several Arawaks. With the Arawaks no longer providing food to the
ships' crew, Columbus was now desperate.
From
a German almanac carried on voyages by all navigators of this era,
Columbus determined that a Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the
Moon would be visible around moonrise in Jamaica on Thursday, 1504
February 29. Three days before the Eclipse, Columbus told the Arawak
Chief that the Christian God was angry with the Arawaks for no longer
providing the needs of Columbus' crew, and the God would make his
anger known when the rising Full Moon is obliterated; the Moon would
appear “inflamed with wrath”, illustrating what could happen to
the Arawak people.
As
Columbus had predicted, on February 29 the rising Moon appeared in an
inflamed and bloody state. The terrified Arawaks immediately came
running with provisions and requesting that Columbus intercede on
their behalf with the Christian God. The Arawaks promised to
cooperate with the ship-wrecked crew, so long as the Moon is returned
to the sky in normal state.
Columbus
retired to his ship cabin, to confer with the Christian God. He used
an hour-glass to time the phases of the Eclipse. Just before the end
of the Total Phase of the Eclipse, Columbus announced that the
Christian God had pardoned the Arawaks, and the Moon would gradually
return to normal, which, of course, did occur. From then on, the
Arawaks did keep Columbus' crew well-supplied until the relief ship
arrived on 1504 June 29.
In
1889, Mark Twain (a.k.a Samuel Clemens) used a similar ploy in his
famous novel, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. To
avoid being burned at the stake, main character Hank Morgan claimed
the power to take away the Sun, at a time he knew a Total Solar
Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Sun would occur. Hank Morgan said he
would return the Sun to normal, in return for his freedom and the
position of “perpetual minister and executive to the king.”
However,
Mark Twain did not consult an almanac, when writing the story. The
date he used for the Eclipse, A.D. 528 June 21, was the first full
day of Summer but not the date of any Eclipse. In fact, that
date was three days after a Full Moon phase, when no Eclipse is
possible.
Two
Taurid Meteor Showers
Two
Taurid Meteor Showers (South Taurid and North Taurid) may be
slightly visible during this Eclipse. Although Lunar Eclipses /
Eclipses of the Moon are not usually the best time to see Meteors (as
a bright Moon often drowns-out the dimmer Meteors), some Meteors may
still be visible, particularly during the time of greatest Eclipse.
The
South Taurid Meteor Shower peaks on Saturday, 2022 November 5 at 1:00
p.m. EST /18:00 UTC. The peak of the North Taurid Meteor Shower comes
on Saturday, 2022 November 12 at 1:00 p.m. EST /18:00 UTC.
Full
Moon of November
The
Full Moon of November, in the Northern Hemisphere, is generally known
as the Beaver Moon. This was the time when Native Americans set-out
beaver traps, before creeks and swamps froze-over, to ensure a good
supply of warm furs and pelts for the coming Winter. Although beavers
do not hibernate, by the following month the beavers would be in
their lodges for the Winter, difficult for hunters to trap.
This
beaver fur was its most usable at this time of year, both waterproof
and warm. The furs also provided a special oil, used as a hair
protector. The beaver was revered by the Americans Indians,
spiritually.
The
Beaver Moon occurs this year on 2022 November 8 at 6:02 a.m. EST /
11:02 UTC.
While
most people consider the Full Moon as the Beaver Moon, the Native
Americans actually considered the whole Moon cycle (all four Moon
phases) as the Beaver Moon (i.e. the Beaver Month for the 28.5-day
lunar cycle). Other researchers believe the Beaver Moon name came
from the fact that beavers, themselves, are active building water
dams, preparing for Winter.
This
month's Full Moon sometimes is also referred to as the Frost or
Frosty Moon. And, some Indian tribes referred to the November Full
Moon as the Deer-Mating Moon or the Fur-Pelts Moon.
For
years when the Harvest Moon occurs in October (when the October Full
Moon date is closer to the Autumnal Equinox than the September Full
Moon date, which occurs about one-third of the time), the November
Full Moon is then also known as the Hunter's Moon. If the November
Full Moon occurs before November 7, then it is a Hunter's Moon.
However, this was not the case this year.
In
the Southern Hemisphere, the Full Moon of November is known as the
Corn Moon, Milk Moon, Flower Moon, and Hare Moon.
Daylight
Saving Time Ends
Just
before this Eclipse occurs, Daylight Saving Time (there is no letter
“s” at the end of the word “Saving” in Daylight Saving Time)
ends in the majority of the United States, which observe Daylight
Saving Time from the second Sunday of March to the first Sunday of
November each year. “Summer Time” ended in the United Kingdom and
most of Europe the previous weekend, when America's Daylight Saving
Time used to end before a change in U.S. Federal law effective
beginning in 2007.
Mexico
also changed their clocks from Daylight Saving Time to Standard Time
last weekend, permanently! On
October 26, the Mexican Senate approved a law that abolishes Daylight
Saving Time over the entire country. However, northern regions of
Mexico, along the American border, are permitted to continue
observing Daylight Saving Time, to be consistent with the American
time zone across the border. Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, President of Mexico, called Standard Time, "God's time".
Daylight
Saving Time ends at 2:00 a.m. Daylight Saving Time, which then
becomes 1:00 a.m. Standard Time, on Sunday Morning, 2022 November 6.
This is effective in all American states except in two states where
Standard Time is observed year-round: Arizona (although tribal
nations in Arizona do observe Daylight Saving Time) and Hawaii (which
does not consider Daylight Saving Time necessary, due to the state's
proximity to the Equator).
The
American dates and times of Daylight Saving Time are also effective
in most of Canada, except most of the province of Saskatchewan and
the Yukon territory which stay on Standard Time all year. Some areas
of the provinces of British Columbia and Quebec and Southampton
Island (Kilvalliq Region of the territory of Nunavut) also remain on
Standard Time year-round.
Mars Closest Approach to Earth & Opposition at End of Month & Beginning of December
The planet Mars will be at its closest approach to Earth, for the last two years and two months, on Wednesday, 2022 November 30 at 9:00 p.m. EST / December 1, 2:00 UTC. Mars will be at a Magnitude of -1.8 with the Martian disk appearing as large as 17.2 seconds-of-arc in diameter, just 4.5 light-minutes away (distance of 0.544 Astronomical Units).
Mars will be in Opposition (with the Earth lying directly between Mars and the Sun - Mars visible all-night-long, approximately local sunset to local sunrise) on Thursday, 2022 December 8 at 1:00 a.m. EST / 6:00 UTC. The Red Planet will appear fairly close to the December Full Moon (Full Moon on Wednesday, 2022 December 7 at 11:08 p.m. EST / December 8, 4:08 UTC).
In fact, the Moon will completely cover the planet Mars, in what astronomers call an Occultation, on Wednesday, 2022 December 7 at 11:00 p.m. EST / December 8 at 4:00 UTC. This Lunar Occultation should be visible, weather-permitting, in most of the United States (except Alaska), Canada, Greenland, northwestern portion of Mexico, Svalbard (archipelago part of Norway), much of Europe, western portion of Russia, and a portion of northern Africa. For other observers, Mars will be in Conjunction with the Full Moon (Mars 0.5 degree south of the Moon).
On Saturday, 2022 November 19, a $4.48 million exhibit on the planet Mars will open at Pittsburgh's Carnegie Science Center. On Saturday, 2022 October 15, a $2.7 million Moonshot Space Museum, regarding robotic missions to the Moon, opened in Pittsburgh.
Internet Links to Determine Where an Eclipse can be Observed ---
Map (NASA): Link >>> https://moon.nasa.gov/news/185/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-lunar-eclipse/
U.S. Naval Observatory Moonrise / Moonset Calculator:
Link >>> https://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/RS_OneDay
Internet Links to Live-stream Web-casts of 2022 Nov. 8 Total Lunar Eclipse / Total Eclipse of the Moon ---
TimeandDate.com: Link >>> https://www.timeanddate.com/live/eclipse-lunar-2022-november-8
Nevada Desert Skies (YouTube): Link >>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scNwWmAOlFs
Kopernik Observatory (YouTube): Link >>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05vdJJN5WzM
High Point Scientific (YouTube): Link >>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdBGWLjecAY
Cosmosapiens (YouTube): Link >>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hph8JCS2w3c
Internet Links to Additional Information ---
Lunar Eclipse / Eclipse of the Moon: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_eclipse
More Information - Eclipse of 2022 November 8 ---
NASA: Link >>> https://moon.nasa.gov/news/185/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-lunar-eclipse/
TimeandDate.com: Link >>> https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/lunar/2022-november-8
EarthSky.org: Link >>> https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/total-lunar-eclipse-nov8-2022/
Wikipedia.org: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_2022_lunar_eclipse
Related Blog Posts ---
"Partial Solar Eclipse Early Tue. Morning, w/ Live-stream Web-casts." Mon., 2022 Oct. 24.
Partial Solar Eclipse / Partial Eclipse of the Sun, 2022 Oct. 25.
"Moonshot Space Museum Opens in Pittsburgh." Thur., 2022 Oct. 20.
"Early Fri. Lunar Eclipse Longest in 1,000 Years." Wed., 2021 Nov. 17.
"Great American Solar Eclipse Next Monday: Some Ways to See It Safely." Mon., 2017 Aug. 14.
Source: Glenn A. Walsh Reporting for SpaceWatchtower, a project of Friends of the Zeiss
Friday, 2022 November 4.
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gaw
Glenn
A. Walsh, Informal Science Educator & Communicator
(For more than 50 years! -
Since Monday Morning, 1972 June 12):
Link >>> http://buhlplanetarium2.tripod.com/weblog/spacewatchtower/gaw/
Electronic Mail: < gawalsh@planetarium.cc >
Project Director, Friends of the Zeiss: Link >>> http://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/fotz/
SpaceWatchtower Editor / Author: Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/
Formerly
Astronomical Observatory Coordinator & Planetarium Lecturer,
original Buhl Planetarium & Institute of Popular Science (a.k.a.
Buhl Science Center), America's fifth major planetarium and Pittsburgh's science & technology museum from
1939 to 1991.
Formerly Trustee, Andrew Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall, Pittsburgh suburb of Carnegie, Pennsylvania, the fourth of only five libraries where both construction and endowment funded by Andrew Carnegie.
Author of History Web Sites on the Internet --
* Buhl Planetarium, Pittsburgh: Link >>> http://www.planetarium.cc Buhl Observatory: Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2016/11/75th-anniversary-americas-5th-public.html
* Adler Planetarium, Chicago: Link >>> http://adlerplanetarium.tripod.com
* Astronomer, Educator, Optician John A. Brashear: Link >>> http://johnbrashear.tripod.com
* Andrew Carnegie & Carnegie Libraries: Link >>> http://www.andrewcarnegie.cc
* Other Walsh-Authored Blog & Web-Sites: Link >>> https://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/gawweb.html
