Lunar eclipse

A lunar eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow,
causing the Moon to be darkened.[1] Such an alignment occurs during an eclipse season,
approximately every six months, during the full moon phase, when the Moon's orbital plane is
closest to the plane of the Earth's orbit.

Latter phases of the partial lunar

eclipse on 17 July 2019 taken from
Gloucestershire, United Kingdom

This can occur only when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are exactly or very closely aligned (in syzygy)
with Earth between the other two, which can happen only on the night of a full moon when the Moon
is near either lunar node. The type and length of a lunar eclipse depend on the Moon's proximity to
the lunar node.

When the Moon is totally eclipsed by the Earth (a "deep eclipse"),[2][3] it takes on a reddish color that
is caused by the planet when it completely blocks direct sunlight from reaching the Moon's surface,
as only the light reflected from the lunar surface has been refracted by the Earth's atmosphere. This
light appears reddish due to the Rayleigh scattering of blue light, the same reason sunrises and
sunsets are more orange than during the day.

Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world, a lunar
eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth. A total lunar eclipse can last up to
nearly two hours, while a total solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes at any given place, because the
Moon's shadow is smaller. Also, unlike solar eclipses, lunar eclipses are safe to view without any
eye protection or special precautions.

The symbol for a lunar eclipse (or indeed, any body in the shadow of another) is (U+1F776 🝶).
Types of lunar eclipse

A schematic diagram of the shadow

cast by Earth. Within the umbra, the
central region, the planet totally
shields direct sunlight. In contrast,
within the penumbra, the outer
portion, the sunlight is only partially
blocked. (Neither the Sun, Moon, and
Earth sizes nor the distances between
the bodies are to scale.)

Earth's shadow can be divided into two distinctive parts: the umbra and penumbra.[4] Earth totally
occludes direct solar radiation within the umbra, the central region of the shadow. However, since
the Sun's diameter appears to be about one-quarter of Earth's in the lunar sky, the planet only
partially blocks direct sunlight within the penumbra, the outer portion of the shadow.

Penumbral lunar eclipse

A penumbral lunar eclipse occurs when part or all of the Moon passes into the Earth's penumbra.[5]
No part of the moon is in the Earth's umbra during this event. The penumbra causes a subtle
dimming of the lunar surface, which is only visible to the naked eye when about 70% of the Moon's
diameter has immersed into Earth's penumbra.[6] A special type of penumbral eclipse is a total
penumbral lunar eclipse, during which the entire Moon lies exclusively within Earth's penumbra. Total
penumbral eclipses are rare, and when these occur, the portion of the Moon closest to the umbra
may appear slightly darker than the rest of the lunar disk.
Partial lunar eclipse

When the Moon penetrates partially into the Earth's umbra, it is known as a partial lunar eclipse,[5]
while a total lunar eclipse occurs when the entire Moon enters the Earth's umbra. During this event,
one part of the moon is in the Earth's umbra, while the other part is in the Earth's penumbra. The
Moon's average orbital speed is about 1.03 km/s (2,300 mph), or a little more than its diameter per
hour, so totality may last up to nearly 107 minutes. Nevertheless, the total time between the first and
last contacts of the Moon's limb with Earth's shadow is much longer and could last up to 236
minutes.[7]

Total lunar eclipse

Timelapse of a total lunar

eclipse

If the Moon entirely passes into the Earth's umbra, a total lunar eclipse occurs.[5] Just prior to
complete entry, the brightness of the lunar limb—the curved edge of the Moon still being hit by
direct sunlight—will cause the rest of the Moon to appear comparatively dim. The moment the Moon
enters a complete eclipse, the entire surface will become more or less uniformly bright. Later, as the
Moon's opposite limb is struck by sunlight, the overall disk will again become obscured. This is
because, as viewed from the Earth, the brightness of a lunar limb is generally greater than that of
the rest of the surface due to reflections from the many surface irregularities within the limb:
sunlight striking these irregularities is always reflected back in greater quantities than that striking
more central parts, which is why the edges of full moons generally appear brighter than the rest of
the lunar surface. This is similar to the effect of velvet fabric over a convex curved surface, which, to
an observer, will appear darkest at the center of the curve. It will be true of any planetary body with
little or no atmosphere and an irregular cratered surface (e.g., Mercury) when viewed opposite the
Sun.[8]
Central lunar eclipse

Central lunar eclipse is a total lunar eclipse during which the Moon passes through the centre of
Earth's shadow, contacting the antisolar point.[9] This type of lunar eclipse is relatively rare.

The relative distance of the Moon from Earth at the time of an eclipse can affect the eclipse's
duration. In particular, when the Moon is near apogee, the farthest point from Earth in its orbit, its
orbital speed is the slowest. The diameter of Earth's umbra does not decrease appreciably within
the changes in the Moon's orbital distance. Thus, the concurrence of a totally eclipsed Moon near
apogee will lengthen the duration of totality.

Selenelion

October 2014 lunar eclipse viewed

from Minneapolis during sunrise.
Both the Moon and Sun were visible
at that time.[10]

A selenelion or selenehelion, also called a horizontal eclipse, occurs where and when both the Sun
and an eclipsed Moon can be observed at the same time. The event can only be observed just
before sunset or just after sunrise, when both bodies will appear just above opposite horizons at
nearly opposite points in the sky. A selenelion occurs during every total lunar eclipse—it is an
experience of the observer, not a planetary event separate from the lunar eclipse itself. Typically,
observers on Earth located on high mountain ridges undergoing false sunrise or false sunset at the
same moment of a total lunar eclipse will be able to experience it. Although during selenelion the
Moon is completely within the Earth's umbra, both it and the Sun can be observed in the sky
because atmospheric refraction causes each body to appear higher (i.e., more central) in the sky
than its true geometric planetary position.[11]
Timing

Contact points relative to the Earth's

umbral and penumbral shadows, here
with the Moon near is descending
node

The timing of total lunar eclipses is determined by what are known as its "contacts" (moments of
contact with Earth's shadow):[12]

P1 (First contact): Beginning of the penumbral eclipse. Earth's penumbra touches the Moon's
outer limb.

U1 (Second contact): Beginning of the partial eclipse. Earth's umbra touches the Moon's outer
limb.

U2 (Third contact): Beginning of the total eclipse. The Moon's surface is entirely within Earth's
umbra.

Greatest eclipse: The peak stage of the total eclipse. The Moon is at its closest to the center of
Earth's umbra.

U3 (Fourth contact): End of the total eclipse. The Moon's outer limb exits Earth's umbra.

U4 (Fifth contact): End of the partial eclipse. Earth's umbra leaves the Moon's surface.

P4 (Sixth contact): End of the penumbral eclipse. Earth's penumbra no longer makes contact with
the Moon.
Danjon scale

The Moon does not completely

darken as it passes through the
umbra because Earth's atmosphere
refracts sunlight into the shadow
cone.

The following scale (the Danjon scale) was devised by André Danjon for rating the overall darkness
of lunar eclipses:[13]

L = 0: Very dark eclipse. Moon almost invisible, especially at mid-totality.

L = 1: Dark eclipse, gray or brownish in coloration. Details distinguishable only with difficulty.

L = 2: Deep red or rust-colored eclipse. Very dark central shadow, while outer edge of umbra is
relatively bright.

L = 3: Brick-red eclipse. Umbral shadow usually has a bright or yellow rim.

L = 4: Very bright copper-red or orange eclipse. Umbral shadow is bluish and has a very bright rim.

Lunar versus solar eclipse

In a lunar eclipse, the Moon often passes through two

regions of Earth's shadow: an outer penumbra, where
direct sunlight is dimmed, and an inner umbra, where
indirect and much dimmer sunlight refracted by Earth's
atmosphere shines on the Moon, leaving a reddish
color. This can be seen in different exposures of a
partial lunar eclipse, for example here with exposures
of 1/80, 2/5, and 2 seconds.
There is often confusion between a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse. While both involve interactions
between the Sun, Earth, and the Moon, they are very different in their interactions.

The Moon does not completely darken as it passes through the umbra because of the refraction of
sunlight by Earth's atmosphere into the shadow cone; if Earth had no atmosphere, the Moon would
be completely dark during the eclipse.[14] The reddish coloration arises because sunlight reaching
the Moon must pass through a long and dense layer of Earth's atmosphere, where it is scattered.
Shorter wavelengths are more likely to be scattered by the air molecules and small particles; thus,
the longer wavelengths predominate by the time the light rays have penetrated the atmosphere.
Human vision perceives this resulting light as red. This is the same effect that causes sunsets and
sunrises to turn the sky a reddish color. An alternative way of conceiving this scenario is to realize
that, as viewed from the Moon, the Sun would appear to be setting (or rising) behind Earth.

The amount of refracted light depends on the amount of dust or clouds in the atmosphere; this also
controls how much light is scattered. In general, the dustier the atmosphere, the more that other
wavelengths of light will be removed (compared to red light), leaving the resulting light a deeper red
color. This causes the resulting coppery-red hue of the Moon to vary from one eclipse to the next.
Volcanoes are notable for expelling large quantities of dust into the atmosphere, and a large
eruption shortly before an eclipse can have a large effect on the resulting color.

Christopher Columbus predicting a

lunar eclipse

Lunar eclipse in culture

Several cultures have myths related to lunar eclipses or allude to the lunar eclipse as being a good
or bad omen. The Egyptians saw the eclipse as a sow swallowing the Moon for a short time; other
cultures view the eclipse as the Moon being swallowed by other animals, such as a jaguar in Mayan
tradition, or a mythical three-legged toad known as Chan Chu in China. Some societies thought it
was a demon swallowing the Moon, and that they could chase it away by throwing stones and
curses at it.[15] The Ancient Greeks correctly believed the Earth was round and used the shadow
from the lunar eclipse as evidence.[16] Some Hindus believe in the importance of bathing in the
Ganges River following an eclipse because it will help to achieve salvation.[17]

Inca

Similarly to the Mayans, the Incans believed that lunar eclipses occurred when a jaguar ate the
Moon, which is why a blood moon looks red. The Incans also believed that once the jaguar finished
eating the Moon, it could come down and devour all the animals on Earth, so they would take spears
and shout at the Moon to keep it away.[18]

Mesopotamians

The ancient Mesopotamians believed that a lunar eclipse was when the Moon was being attacked
by seven demons. This attack was more than just one on the Moon, however, for the
Mesopotamians linked what happened in the sky with what happened on the land, and because the
king of Mesopotamia represented the land, the seven demons were thought to be also attacking the
king. In order to prevent this attack on the king, the Mesopotamians made someone pretend to be
the king so they would be attacked instead of the true king. After the lunar eclipse was over, the
substitute king was made to disappear (possibly by poisoning).[18]

Chinese

In some Chinese cultures, people would ring bells to prevent a dragon or other wild animals from
biting the Moon.[19] In the 19th century, during a lunar eclipse, the Chinese navy fired its artillery
because of this belief.[20] During the Zhou Dynasty (c. 1046–256 BC) in the Book of Songs, the sight
of a Red Moon engulfed in darkness was believed to foreshadow famine or disease.[21]
Blood moon

Totality during the lunar eclipse of 15

May 2022. Direct sunlight is being
blocked by the Earth, and the only
light reaching it is sunlight refracted
by Earth's atmosphere, producing a
reddish color.

Certain lunar eclipses have been referred to as "blood moons" in popular articles but this is not a
scientifically recognized term.[22] This term has been given two separate, but overlapping, meanings.

The meaning usually relates to the reddish color a totally eclipsed Moon takes on to observers on
Earth.[23] As sunlight penetrates the atmosphere of Earth, the gaseous layer filters and refracts the
rays in such a way that the green to violet wavelengths on the visible spectrum scatter more
strongly than the red, thus giving the Moon a reddish cast.[24] This is possible because the rays from
the Sun are able to wrap around the Earth and reflect off the Moon.[25]
Occurrence

As the Earth revolves around the Sun,

approximate axial parallelism of the
Moon's orbital plane (tilted five
degrees to the Earth's orbital plane)
results in the revolution of the lunar
nodes relative to the Earth. This
causes an eclipse season
approximately every six months, in
which a solar eclipse can occur at the
new moon phase and a lunar eclipse
can occur at the full moon phase.

At least two lunar eclipses and as many as five occur every year, although total lunar eclipses are
significantly less common than partial lunar eclipses. If the date and time of an eclipse is known,
the occurrences of upcoming eclipses are predictable using an eclipse cycle, like the saros.
Eclipses occur only during an eclipse season, when the Sun appears to pass near either node of the
Moon's orbit.

View from the Moon

A painting by Lucien Rudaux showing how a solar eclipse

might appear when viewed from the lunar surface. The
Moon's surface appears red because the only sunlight
available is refracted through Earth's atmosphere on the
edges of Earth, as shown in the sky in this painting.
A lunar eclipse is on the Moon a solar eclipse. The occurrence makes Earth's atmosphere appear as
a red ring around the dark Earth. During full moon, the phase when lunar eclipses take place, the
dark side of the Earth is illuminated by the Moon and its moon light.

See also

Lists of lunar eclipses and List of 21st-century lunar eclipses

Lunar occultation

Moon illusion

Orbit of the Moon

Solar eclipse

References

1. McClure, Bruce (27 July 2018). "Century's Longest Lunar Eclipse July 27" (http://earthsky.org/tonight/cent
urys-longest-lunar-eclipse-july-27) . EarthSky. Retrieved 1 August 2018.

2. Staff (2023). "PHYS 1350 Astronomy Exam 3 (TXST-Olson)" (https://quizlet.com/341047631/phys-1350-a

stronomy-exam-3-txst-olson-flash-cards/) . Quizlet. Archived (https://archive.today/20231109125204/htt
ps://quizlet.com/341047631/phys-1350-astronomy-exam-3-txst-olson-flash-cards/) from the original on
9 November 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023. "What is a deep eclipse? The smaller star is behind the
bigger star"

3. Miller, A.M.; et al. (7 November 2023). "ATel #16328 - ASASSN-23ht: A Deep Eclipse Event" (https://www.a
stronomerstelegram.org/?read=16328) . The Astronomer's Telegram. Archived (https://archive.today/202
31109132351/https://www.astronomerstelegram.org/?read=16328) from the original on 9 November
2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.

4. Link 1969, p. 1.

5. Link 1969, p. 2.

6. H. Mucke, J. Meeus (1992). Canon of Lunar Eclipses -2002 to +2526 (3rd ed.). Astronomisches Büro Wien.
p. V.

7. Karttunen, Hannu (2007). Fundamental Astronomy (https://books.google.com/books?id=DjeVdb0sLEAC&p

g=PA139) . Springer. p. 139. ISBN 9783540341444.

8. "Lunar Limb Magic" (https://astronomy.com/magazine/stephen-omeara/2018/11/copy-of-lunar-limb-magi

c) . Astronomy.com. 27 November 2018.

9. Westfall, John; Sheehan, William (2014). Celestial Shadows: Eclipses, Transits, and Occultations. Springer.
p. 50. ISBN 978-1493915354.
10. "Day and Night World Map" (https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/sunearth.html?day=8&month=10&
year=2014&hour=7&min=25&sec=0&n=159&ntxt=Minneapolis&earth=0) . www.timeanddate.com.
Retrieved 1 November 2023.

11. Kelly Beatty (26 June 2010). "In Search of Selenelion" (https://web.archive.org/web/20111220123836/htt
p://www.skyandtelescope.com/community/skyblog/observingblog/97224024.html) . Sky & Telescope.
Archived from the original (http://www.skyandtelescope.com/community/skyblog/observingblog/972240
24.html) on 20 December 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2011.

12. Clarke, Kevin. "On the nature of eclipses" (http://www.inconstantmoon.com/cyc_ecl1.htm) . Inconstant

Moon. Cyclopedia Selenica. Retrieved 19 December 2010.

13. Deans, Paul; MacRobert, Alan M. (16 July 2006). "Observing and Photographing Lunar Eclipses" (https://w
eb.archive.org/web/20070520233320/http://skytonight.com/observing/objects/eclipses/3304036.htm
l) . Sky & Telescope. F+W. Archived from the original (http://skytonight.com/observing/objects/eclipses/
3304036.html) on 20 May 2007. Retrieved 7 January 2007.

14. Espenak, Fred; Meeus, Jean. "Visual Appearance of Lunar Eclipses" (http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEcat5/
appearance.html) . NASA. "The troposphere and stratosphere act together as a ring-shaped lens that
refracts heavily reddened sunlight into Earth's umbral shadow."

15. Littmann, Mark; Espenak, Fred; Willcox, Ken (2008). "Chapter 4: Eclipses in Mythology". Totality Eclipses of
the Sun (https://books.google.com/books?id=UOnH01tv078C) (3rd ed.). New York: Oxford University
Press. ISBN 978-0-19-953209-4.

16. Pollack, Rebecca. "Ancient Myths Revised with Lunar Eclipse" (https://www.astro.umd.edu/openhouse/3a
bout-the-obs/news/2003-11-10.html) . University of Maryland. Retrieved 2 October 2014.

17. Ani. "Hindus take a dip in the Ganges during Lunar Eclipse" (https://in.news.yahoo.com/hindus-dip-ganges
-during-lunar-eclipse-105428179.html) . Yahoo News. Retrieved 2 October 2014.

18. Lee, Jane (14 April 2014). "Lunar Eclipse Myths From Around the World" (https://web.archive.org/web/201
40417133236/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/04/140413-total-lunar-eclipse-myths-spa
ce-culture-science) . National Geographic. Archived from the original (http://news.nationalgeographic.co
m/news/2014/04/140413-total-lunar-eclipse-myths-space-culture-science/) on 17 April 2014. Retrieved
9 October 2014.

19. Quilas, Ma Evelyn. "Interesting Facts and Myths about Lunar Eclipse" (http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/5481
33/20140415/lunar-eclipse-facts-myths-superstition-nasa.htm#.VC2MJyldXmU) . LA Times. Retrieved
2 October 2014.

20. "Mythology of the Lunar Eclipse" (https://www.lifeasmyth.com/journal_planet_Eclipse.html) .

LifeAsMyth.com.

21. Kaul, Gayatri (15 June 2011). "What Lunar Eclipse Means in Different Parts of the World" (http://www.dnai
ndia.com/india/report-what-lunar-eclipse-means-in-different-parts-of-world-1555136) . India.com.
Retrieved 6 October 2014.
22. Sappenfield, Mark (13 April 2014). "Blood Moon to arrive Monday night. What is a Blood Moon?" (http://w
ww.csmonitor.com/Science/2014/0413/Blood-Moon-to-arrive-Monday-night.-What-is-a-Blood-Moon) .
The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 8 February 2018.

23. Nigro, Nicholas (2010). Knack Night Sky: Decoding the Solar System, from Constellations to Black Holes (htt
ps://books.google.com/books?id=iwim2lHciHAC&pg=PA214) . Globe Pequot. pp. 214–5. ISBN 978-0-
7627-6604-8.

24. "All you need to know about the 'blood moon' " (https://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/sep/28/all-yo
u-need-to-know-about-the-blood-moon) . theguardian. 28 September 2015.

25. Jeanna, Bryner (13 May 2022). "Why does the moon turn red during a total lunar eclipse?" (https://www.sp
ace.com/why-moon-turns-red-total-lunar-eclipse) . Space.com. Retrieved 5 January 2023.

Works cited
Link, F. (1969). "Lunar Eclipses" (https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-642-86475-9_1) . Eclipse
Phenomena in Astronomy (https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-642-86475-9) . Springer-Verlag
Berlin Heidelberg. pp. 1–121. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-86475-9 (https://doi.org/10.1007%2F978-3-642-86475-
9) . ISBN 978-3-642-86475-9. LCCN 68-56208 (https://lccn.loc.gov/68-56208) . Retrieved 3 January 2023.

Further reading

Bao-Lin Liu, Canon of Lunar Eclipses 1500 B.C.-A.D. 3000. Willmann-Bell, Richmond VA, 1992

Jean Meeus and Hermann Mucke Canon of Lunar Eclipses -2002 to +2526 (3rd edition).
Astronomisches Büro, Vienna, 1992

Espenak, F., Fifty Year Canon of Lunar Eclipses: 1986–2035. NASA Reference Publication 1216,
1989

Espenak, F. Thousand Year Canon of Lunar Eclipses 1501 to 2500, Astropixels Publishing, Portal
AZ, 2014

External links

Lunar eclipse
at Wikipedia's sister projects

Definitions from Wiktionary

Media from Commons

News from Wikinews

Texts from Wikisource

 Textbooks from Wikibooks

Lunar Eclipse Essentials: video from NASA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuhNZejHeBg)

Animated explanation of the mechanics of a lunar eclipse (http://alienworlds.southwales.ac.uk/lu

narEclipse.html) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20130603050300/http://alienworlds.so
uthwales.ac.uk/lunarEclipse.html) 2013-06-03 at the Wayback Machine, University of South
Wales

U.S. Navy Lunar Eclipse Computer (http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/LunarEclipse.php)

Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20110813225301/http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/Lun
arEclipse.php) 2011-08-13 at the Wayback Machine

NASA Lunar Eclipse Page (https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/lunar.html)

Search among the 12,064 lunar eclipses over five millennium and display interactive maps (http://
xjubier.free.fr/en/site_pages/lunar_eclipses/5MCLE/xLE_Five_Millennium_Canon.html)

Lunar Eclipses for Beginners (https://www.mreclipse.com/Special/LEprimer.html)

Tips on photographing the lunar eclipse from New York Institute of Photography (http://www.nyip.
com/ezine/outdoors/eclipse.html) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20110714220146/ht
tp://www.nyip.com/ezine/outdoors/eclipse.html) 2011-07-14 at the Wayback Machine

Lunar Eclipse 08 October 2014 - NASA FULL VERSION (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAn6

NrxUt7g) on YouTube

Portals: Astronomy Stars Spaceflight Outer space Solar System