According to the Guangzhou Wuyang Planetarium, on May 26 this year, there will be a rare celestial phenomenon in which total lunar eclipse (red moon) and super moon will be staged simultaneously.
At 9:50 that day, the moon moved to its closest point to the earth. The distance between the two was only 357,311 kilometers. The apparent diameter of the full moon reached 33.5 arc minutes, the largest in the whole year. At 19:14 on the same day, a total lunar eclipse occurred when the sun, earth and moon were aligned (looking) in a straight line.
This time the moon will be closest to the earth and the moon will be at its fullest, only 9 hours apart. Usually, the time difference between the above two (the roundest and the closest to the earth) is less than 24 hours, and both can be called super moons, which are worth watching and photographing by astronomy enthusiasts and photography enthusiasts.
html Total lunar eclipse in May. Photo by Li Jianji
The first waning time of the total lunar eclipse on the evening of May 26 is 17:45
According to reports, the total lunar eclipse can be divided into seven stages:
The total lunar eclipse on May 26, the penumbral eclipse begins at 16:46 (the moon begins to contact the earth halfway)
initial waning is at 17:45 (the moon just touches the earth's umbral shadow);
eclipse is at 19:09 (the moon happens to completely enter the earth's umbra);
eclipse is at 19:19 (the center of the moon and the earth's shadow) The center is closest to each other), the maximum eclipse minute is 1.015;
luminescence is at 19:28 (the moment when the moon emerges from the earth's umbral shadow);
completes the circle at 20:53 (the moon is just completely out of the earth's umbral shadow); penumbral eclipse It ends at 21:51 (the moon happens to be completely out of the earth's penumbra).
html Schematic diagram of the May total lunar eclipse process. Li Desheng draws
Guangzhou Wuyang Planetarium said that the entire process of the total lunar eclipse can be seen in New Zealand, Oceania. A total lunar eclipse (red moon) can be seen in the eastern part of my country, but the height of the moon is slightly lower and the clouds are slightly thicker; a partial lunar eclipse can be seen in the western part of my country.
The trajectory of the super moon in Guangzhou on the evening of May 26 is roughly as follows: at 19:02, the eclipsed moon slowly rises from the horizon in the south-east; at 0:38 a.m. the next day, the round full moon rises to the zenith. At that time, the moon was located due south, with an altitude of 45 degrees above the horizon, exactly in midair; at 6:10, the golden summer moon sank faintly on the horizon in the south-west.
Types of lunar eclipses and their orbits. Drawing by Li Desheng
You can also watch the "Red Moon" that night
It is worth mentioning that when a total lunar eclipse occurs on the evening of May 26, when the moon enters the earth's umbra, the public can witness the moon taking on a bronze color, which is what people call it. "Red Moon". Why does
have a "red moon"?
According to reports, since the moon orbits the earth from west to east, the eastern edge of the moon enters the earth's shadow first. And because sunlight has seven colors: "red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple", red light has the longest wavelength and penetrates The atmosphere or refraction scattering has the strongest ability. On the evening of
26, because the moon is located over the southern hemisphere, the moonrise is seen on the east-south horizon in various places in my country; the moonset is seen on the west-south horizon.
Next year's super moon will appear in July.
If you can't enjoy this total lunar eclipse and its super moon due to weather and other reasons, you may have to wait another year.
Guangzhou Wuyang Planetarium stated that the super moon will be visible in the early morning of July 14, 2022. Among them, at 17:05 on July 13, the moon and the earth are closest to each other in the whole year. The distance between the two is only 357,264 kilometers, closer to the earth than this year’s super moon; at 2:37 am on July 14 (looking), the moon is at its closest. round.
A total lunar eclipse will likely occur on November 8, 2022, which will be visible in eastern my country. The maximum eclipse time will be 18:58 and the maximum eclipse will be 1.363. The viewing time is longer and more ideal than this year’s total lunar eclipse.
