Sky gazers are in for a rare celestial treat this Sunday. A ‘super blood moon’ will be visible on the sky canvas on September 27. The moon will once again drown in the Earth’s shadow to give us a total lunar eclipse. The total lunar eclipse will be the fourth such event in the last 17 months.
What actually happens is pretty simple to understand. The Moon shifts into the shadow of Mother Earth and the light being refracted through the planet’s atmosphere paints the Moon in a deep-red color. Early civilizations took this as an ominous sign of a nearing apocalypse. Today, we simply grab telescopes and/or binoculars and enjoy the view.
The red color explains the ‘blood’ part of a super blood moon. Coming to the word ‘super’, the moon will appear to be bigger, brighter, and closer to us on this occasion. As moon’s orbit is not a proper circle, there are times when our natural satellite hangs around closer than usual. To be precise, it will be 14% larger, as per NASA.
But what really makes this celestial treat a rare one is the fact that this super blood moon will coincide with a total lunar eclipse. The last time the two phenomena occurred together was 33 years ago. In the last 115 years, this has happened only four times. So if you are younger than 33, you have never seen this and may not see this again till 2018.
The view can be enjoyed all across North and South America, Europe, Africa, and even parts of West Asia as well as the eastern Pacific. You don’t need high-tech expensive scientific gizmos to enjoy the view, but you do need to be at the right place at the right time.
(Featured Image Credit: dailymail.co.uk)
