Americans have great seats for seeing all four of the upcoming total eclipses of the moon as they will be visible country wide, weather permitting. Turn your gaze to the stars tonight for an eerie and spectacular view of the “blood moon.” At 12:53 a.m. ET, the Earth will begin to position itself between the sun and the moon for the first of a series of four total eclipses to conclude in September 2015. The phenomenon is known as a tetrad, in which the moon is completely covered by the earth’s umbral shadow for four eclipses in a row, as opposed to only partial eclipses that fall in the outer penumbra. But rather than succumbing to complete darkness, the moon will glow red as it receives the refracted light that spills over the Earth’s circumference. According to NASA, this is why the moon will glow red... Why red? A quick trip to the Moon provides the answer: Imagine yourself standing on a dusty lunar plain looking up at the sky. Overhead hangs Earth, nightside down, completely hiding the sun behind it. The eclipse is underway. You might expect Earth seen in this way to be utterly dark, but its not. The rim of the planet is on fire! As you scan your eye around Earths circumference, youre seeing every sunrise and every sunset in the world, all of them, all at once. This incredible light beams into the heart of Earths shadow, filling it with a coppery glow and transforming the Moon into a great red orb. Set your alarms and enjoy the tetrad! NASA link: science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2014/27mar_tetrad/
Posted on: Mon, 14 Apr 2014 15:52:25 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015