Nearly all of the Moon will slip into Earth’s dark shadow, with the best view around midnight
MANASSAS — Night owls, stargazers and anyone looking for something a little different to do Thursday night have a good reason to step outside.
A deep partial lunar eclipse will be visible across the Manassas area Thursday night into early Friday morning, and this one will come very close to being a total eclipse.
The noticeable part of the show begins around 10:34 p.m. Thursday, when Earth’s dark shadow starts moving across the Moon. The eclipse reaches its maximum at about 12:13 a.m. Friday.
And “partial” doesn’t mean there won’t be much to see.
NASA says 96.3% of the Moon’s disk will be inside Earth’s darkest shadow at maximum eclipse. The covered portion of the Moon could appear dark copper or reddish-orange.
A few fun eclipse facts
- The reddish color comes from Earth’s atmosphere. The same process that gives us colorful red and orange sunsets filters sunlight before it reaches the eclipsed Moon.
- This eclipse has relatives. It belongs to a repeating family of eclipses called Saros 138. The previous eclipse in this series occurred in 2008. The next arrives in 2044 — about 18 years from now.
- You don’t need to travel anywhere special. A backyard, porch, park or other spot with a clear view of the sky should do just fine.
- Unlike a solar eclipse, this one is safe to watch without special eyewear. Binoculars or a telescope can make the view even better.
The entire eclipse lasts several hours, but for Manassas-area viewers, around midnight will be the time to look up.
Weather permitting, it should be quite a show.
