05.13.03
Lunar Eclipse in Two Days
Space.com reports on a total lunar eclipse coming May 15-16. We on the West Coast will not get the full effect since the moon will be in mid-eclipse by the time moonrise comes along at 8:00PM. Here is an excerpt from the report:
The eclipse will begin rather undramatically when the Moon enters the faint outer portion, or penumbra, of the Earth’s shadow about an hour before it begins moving into the umbra. The penumbral portion of the event is all but invisible to the eye until the Moon becomes deeply immersed in it. Sharp-eyed viewers may get their first glimpse of the penumbra as a faint “smudge” on the left part of the Moon’s disk at or around 1:46 GMT (on May 16) which corresponds to 9:46 p.m. EDT on May 15, or 7:46 p.m. MDT.
The event becomes more remarkable when Moon begins to enter the Earth’s dark inner shadow (the umbra). A small scallop of darkness will begin to appear on the Moon’s left edge at 2:03 GMT (on May 16) corresponding to 10:03 p.m. EDT (on May 15) or 8:03 p.m. MDT.