The second total lunar eclipse of the year occurs in August as the Moon aligns with the Sun and Earth.
As you go to bed on Monday, August 27, set your alarm for the early hours of the morning or you will miss the second total eclipse of the year. Although in North America the eclipse will favor those on the West Coast, almost all observers on the continent should be able to catch a glimpse of it.
For viewers in the eastern United States, the total eclipse begins at 5:52 am EDT on August 28. The partial phase begins approximately one hour before this. The moment of mid-eclipse is at 6:37 am EDT but for those people in this time zone, the moon will set and the sun will rise before mid-eclipse, blocking eastern observers from seeing the end.
For viewers in the central United States, it depends on how far west you live how much of the eclipse you can view. In the central time zone, the total eclipse begins at 4:52 am CDT on August 28. Again, the partial phase of the eclipse begins about one hour before total eclipse. The moon will stay dark until 6:22 am CDT, when the partial phase will again occur and slowly brighten the moon. The farther west you are, the more of the eclipse you will see before the moon sets.
For viewers in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States, the partial eclipse begins at 2:51 am MDT, and total phase starts at 3:52 am MDT and ends at 5:22 am MDT, and the partial phase wraps up by 6:24 am MDT. The end of the eclipse will coincide with the sky brightening and the moon setting in the west for many observers.
For viewers in the western United States, the partial lunar eclipse begins at 1:51 am PDT. The total lunar eclipse will start at 2:52 am PDT and end at 4:22 am PDT. The final partial phase will end by 5:24 am PDT. The moon will be above the horizon for most all western observers, allowing them to view all the stages of the eclipse.
Residents of Alaska and Hawaii will get to see the complete lunar eclipse. Although for Hawaiians, the partial phase will begin at 10:51 pm HST and the total phase will begin at 11:52 pm HST on August 27.
What to Look For
The bright glow of the Full Moon (because lunar eclipses can only occur during a full moon) will appear to have had a gouge taken out of it. This dark shadow will slip slowly across the face of the moon over the course of an hour, until the moon is completely darkened in the total phase. But the moon does not always appear dark during an eclipse. You may see an orangish or reddish hue on the surface of the moon. This is caused by sunlight refracting through atmosphere at the edges of the Earth -- what you are really seeing is a combination of Earth's sunrises and sunsets projected onto the moon. During times when there is smoke or dust in our atmosphere the moon can take on different vivid hues.
The moon will be in the constellation Aquarius during the eclipse. Follow the link to learn about the stars and deep-sky objects that the moon will be near. Two bright stars near the moon but in neighboring constellations will be Fomalhaut, a magnitude 1.17 star south of the moon in the constellation Pisces Austrinus, and the bright Altair, a magnitude 0.76 star west of the moon in the constellation Aquila. Aquila is part of the Summer Triangle, which will be floating above the eclipsed moon.
Hope for clear skies!
Skywatching Guide for August 2007
Skywatching Guide for September 2007
