Night owls and sky gazers will be able to see a partial lunar eclipse beginning at 10:02 p.m on Thursday that is predicted to last approximately 3.5 hours according to NASA.
The moon is expected to pass into the earth’s shadow cast by the sun which will show an illuminating red hue in the night sky in the place of a traditional grey. According to the Holocomb Observatory at Butler University, this will be the longest recorded partial lunar eclipse in 580 years.
Peak eclipse hours will be at 1:02 a.m. when 97 percent of the moon is in the darkest part of the earth’s shadow. According to NASA, this will be an “almost total” lunar eclipse because up to 99.1 percent of the moon’s disk will pass into the Earth’s umbra.
NASA reports there hasn’t been a longer partial lunar eclipse since February 18, 1440, clocking in at 3 hours, 28 minutes, 46 seconds. It will remain the longest partial lunar eclipse for 648 years until February 8, 2669, which is anticipated to last 3 hours, 30 minutes, and 2 seconds.
Tonight’s celestial events will be the first lunar eclipse that is visible in North America since the total super blood moon eclipse in May. There will be a longer total lunar eclipse on November 8, 2022.
The partial lunar eclipse is expected to end at 4:05 a.m. According to the Griffith Observatory, the eclipse should be visible from anywhere in southern California and it is safe to view without eye protection.
