LaCosaNostra Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 (SPACE.com) -- Sky watchers on half the planet are gearing up to watch Earth's shadow consume a blood-red moon Wednesday night in the last total lunar eclipse until 2007. Weather permitting, the easy-to-watch event will be visible across most of North and South America, Western Europe and Africa. It will be webcast live from several locations, and glimpses might be televised during Game 4 of the World Series. The eclipse begins at shortly after 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT), but the first hour or so won't be noticeable as the moon becomes lightly shaded by Earth's outer shadow, called the penumbra. Things get real interesting at 9:14 p.m. ET (6:14 p.m. PT), when the moon begins sliding into Earth's full shadow, or umbra. A dark and growing scallop then gradually will envelop Earth's only natural satellite. Once in total shadow at 10:23 p.m. ET (7:23 p.m. PT), the moon might turn a shade of deep red that frightened the ancients. No two eclipses are alike, however, and astronomers can't say for sure what color to expect, if any. What's going on? Lunar eclipses occur when Earth's shadow prevents sunlight from reflecting off the moon. They can only occur during full moon, and only on the relatively rare occasions when the moon's orbit carries it into the same plane of space as Earth's path around the sun. The schedule is predictable but somewhat erratic. There have been four total lunar eclipses during the past 18 months, but there won't be another one until March 3, 2007. During totality, when the moon is completely immersed in shadow, it might turn red, the result of Earth's atmosphere bending hints of all the world's sunrises and sunsets simultaneously onto the moon while the sun's primary light is blocked. Totality lasts until 11:45 p.m. ET (8:45 p.m. PT). "The moon will never be completely dark," explained Charles Schweighauser, professor of astronomy and physics at the University of Illinois at Springfield. "The color of the moon in shadow will range from a coppery color to dark red, depending on the amount of dust and water vapor in the Earth's atmosphere." Easy to watch Telescopes are not needed to enjoy a lunar eclipse, but binoculars or a low-power telescope will enhance the color, astronomers advise. Otherwise, warm clothing and perhaps a lounge chair and a hot beverage are all that's needed to enjoy the show. "Unlike solar eclipses, lunar eclipses are completely safe to watch," said Fred Espenak, a veteran eclipse forecaster at NASA. People in parts of western Asia will glimpse a bit of the eclipse, and it will be visible from all of Canada and Central and South America. People in the Western United States will miss the earliest stages, when the moon is in the penumbral shadow of Earth. "But this is the least interesting and [least] dramatic part of the eclipse," Espenak said. "The more important and photogenic partial and total phases will be visible from all of North America with the exception of Alaska." In southwest Alaska, the moon will rise totally eclipsed. For Hawaiians, moonrise comes just after the end of totality. The eclipse will play out as fans watch the World Series on Wednesday night in St. Louis, Missouri. It will be the first eclipse in history to occur during a World Series game. Depending on the plans and whims of Fox television producers and camera operators, and the weather, shots of the eclipse could be broadcast to the largest audience ever to see one. Several live webcasts of the eclipse are planned from many countries, so even though some locations will be clouded out, viewing opportunities remain high. It's eclipsing right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
why write? Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 watching this..been watching this, i find this shit interesting only at my house...i took a class on astronomy and got a 17 as a total score Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GamblersGrin Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 yeah i been checkin it out in my keep the party legal w/ booze and pills no work tomorrow demeanor. im a nerd for this type of shit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oneeightyone Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 just took a picture, it's mighty interesting, ill go back out in like 10 to 20 minutes.\\ bostons gonna win too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
why write? Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 wish i had flicks of this...i need a new camera Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaCosaNostra Posted October 28, 2004 Author Share Posted October 28, 2004 Originally posted by GamblersGrin@Oct 27 2004, 08:33 PM im a nerd for this type of shit. Quoted post say word. I took some pretty shitty flicks i dont feel like ulpoading, but that was pretty ill. Annunaki. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GamblersGrin Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 i took some pics of an eclipse a couple years back but they came out the poop shoot. i held off this year. ill wait for the 2007 version. just saying 2007 seems so far away when this eclipse will happen again, like its 20 years from now but its only a few. crazy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TuffKid Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 the world is ending... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oneeightyone Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 i wish i had a telescope, i do have zoom and a tripod...good enough. ....boston is 3 to 0 bottom of the 7th. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest imported_El Mamerro Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 How much does this statement rule? During totality, when the moon is completely immersed in shadow, it might turn red, the result of Earth's atmosphere bending hints of all the world's sunrises and sunsets simultaneously onto the moon while the sun's primary light is blocked. I'm copping this eclipse right now... shit's fire. Haha, get it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaCosaNostra Posted October 28, 2004 Author Share Posted October 28, 2004 ^ Holy shit, that is pretty dope, haha. Translation though? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Peanut Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 I took a picture of it earlier and it looks exactly like oneeightyone's. so just imagine that I'm posting that picture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatalist Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 yeah...i found the eclipse pretty intresting myself...i also tryed to take flicks....but they didn't come out good... :mad: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kr430n5_666 Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AREANKAY Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 me and the gf sat on the corner of my block over the subway stairwell drinking wine in little plastic mugs and watched the eclipse. SOOO GANGSTA :king: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overtime Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 i watched it som, but then stopped, and now hope i watch it in 2007, i wish i had watched more.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunm Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 i SAW MOST OF IT....PRETTY TRIPPY. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trackstand Posted December 22, 2004 Share Posted December 22, 2004 Ah what a great night... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duh-rye-won Posted December 22, 2004 Share Posted December 22, 2004 you're all going to go blind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest imported_El Mamerro Posted December 22, 2004 Share Posted December 22, 2004 ^Damn, it took this long to get to Hong Kong? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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