Penumbral lunar eclipse this evening

According to a Post article from several weeks ago there is a penumbral lunar eclipse tonight.

In this rare kind of eclipse, the Earth stands exactly between the sun and the moon as the moon crosses through Earth’s outer perimeter shadow, or penumbra. This is not a total lunar eclipse, which occurs when the moon runs through the shadow core and turns a rusty brown. In a penumbral eclipse, the color change is more subtle…

The eclipse starts at 4:21 p.m. Eastern time, about 50 minutes before sunset, on March 14. When the sun sets at 5:14 p.m., you should see the full moon rising in the east. The middle of the eclipse is 6:47 p.m., and it ends by 9:13 p.m., according to Espenak.

There are only five in this century, so hopefully the sky will clear enough to see.

1 Comment so far

  1. rosemary (unregistered) on March 14th, 2006 @ 4:22 pm

    heh, im going to try and see if i can catch it tonight. of course, im not near dc right now, but its worth a shot.



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