The first “supermoon” total lunar eclipse since 1982, will take place on Sunday, September 27. This phenomenon won’t occur again until 2033!
The orbit of the moon is elliptical rather than circular, so the moon is sometimes closer to the Earth than at other times during its orbit. When the moon is farthest away it’s known as “apogee”, and when it’s closest it’s known as “perigee”. A “supermoon” (also called “perigee moon”) is a full moon that occurs at, or very near, perigee and appears bigger and brighter in the sky as a result. It will appear about 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than usual. On Sunday, it will actually be the closest full moon of the year, about 30,000 miles closer than the average distance.
This “supermoon” will coincide with a total lunar eclipse. Making it the brightest and darkest full moon of the year! “Supermoon” eclipses are special, having occurred just five times since 1900 (in 1910, 1928, 1946, 1964 and 1982) according to a NASA video.
A blood moon is a total lunar eclipse. In the shadow of the Earth, the moon, when eclipsed, can take on a red glow. Throughout history, eclipses have inspired awe and fear when the moon has turned blood-red. The upcoming “supermoon” blood moon has some people around the world fearing a financial or natural upheaval, even preparing for the “end times”.
Scientifically however, a lunar eclipse is when the moon, Earth and sun align in a straight line with the Earth in between the sun and the moon. Sunlight is made up of the full spectrum of colors. Because the atmosphere scatters blue more than red, all the blue light is “filtered out” of the sunlight by the Earth. The red light that doesn’t scatter remains and reaches the moon after passing through the Earth’s atmosphere. It is this red light that hits the moon and causes the “blood moon”.
Sunday evening’s Supermoon Blood-moon Total Lunar Eclipse times for Victoria:
- Moonrise: 6:59 pm
- Sunset: 7:01 pm
- Total eclipse starts: 7:11 pm
- Maximum eclipse: 7:47 pm
- Supermoon full moon: 7:50 pm
- End of partial eclipse: 9:27 pm
