January 2018 lunar eclipse
| Total lunar eclipse January 31, 2018 | |
|---|---|
 Totality from California | |
Ecliptic north up The moon passed east to west (left to right) through the Earth's shadow. | |
| Saros (and member) | 124 (49 of 74) |
| Gamma | −0.3014 |
| Duration (hr:mn:sc) | |
| Totality | 1:16:04 |
| Partial | 3:22:44 |
| Penumbral | 5:17:12 |
| Contacts (UTC) | |
| P1 | 10:51:15 |
| U1 | 11:48:27 |
| U2 | 12:51:47 |
| Greatest | 13:29:50 |
| U3 | 14:07:51 |
| U4 | 15:11:11 |
| P4 | 16:08:27 |
A total lunar eclipse took place on January 31, 2018. The moon was close to its perigee on January 30 and so may be described as a "supermoon". The previous supermoon lunar eclipse was in September 2015.[1]
As it was also a blue moon, the second full moon in the calendar month of January 2018, it was referred to as a "super blue blood moon"; the term "blood" referred to the typical color of the moon during the lunar eclipse.[2] This coincidence last occurred on December 30, 1982 for the eastern hemisphere,[3] and otherwise before that on March 31, 1866.[4][5] The next occurrence will be on January 31, 2037, one metonic cycle forward (19 years).
Contents
Background
A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes within Earth's umbra (shadow). As the eclipse begins, Earth's shadow first darkens the Moon slightly. Then, the shadow begins to "cover" part of the Moon, turning it a dark red-brown color (typically – the color can vary based on atmospheric conditions). The Moon appears to be reddish because of Rayleigh scattering (the same effect that causes sunsets to appear reddish) and the refraction of that light by Earth's atmosphere into its umbra.[6]
The following simulation shows the approximate appearance of the Moon passing through Earth's shadow. The northern portion of the Moon is closest to the center of the shadow, making it darkest and reddest in appearance.
"Super blue blood moon"
This was a "supermoon", as the Moon was near to its closest distance to earth in its elliptical orbit, making it 7% larger in diameter or 14% larger in area, than an average full moon. The previous supermoon lunar eclipse was the September 2015 lunar eclipse.[1]
The full moon of the 31 January 2018 was the second full moon that calendar month (in most time zones), making it, under one definition of the term, a "blue moon".
Additionally referencing the orange or red "blood" colors that occur during a lunar eclipse, media sources described the event as a "super blue blood Moon".[7]
Overview
Visibility
The Pacific Ocean was turned toward the Moon at the time of the eclipse. Central and eastern Asia (including most of Siberia), Philippines, Indonesia, New Zealand and most of Australia got a good view of this moon show in the evening sky. For western Asia, the Indian subcontinent, the Middle East and Eastern Europe, the eclipse was underway as the moon rose.[8]
Along the U.S. West Coast, the total phase began at 4:51 a.m. PST. The further east, the closer the start of the partial phases coincided with moonset. Along the U.S. Atlantic Seaboard, for instance, the Moon had only just begun to enter the darkest part of Earth's shadow, the umbra, at 6:48 a.m. EST when it disappeared from view below the west-northwest horizon. The duration of the total phase was 77 minutes, with the Moon tracking through the southern part of the Earth's shadow. During totality, the Moon's lower limb appeared brighter than the dark upper limb.[8]
 View of earth from moon during greatest eclipse |
 Visibility map |
Timing
| Eclipse | HST | AKST | PST | MST | CST | EST | UTC | MSK | IST | ICT | CST | JSTi | AEDT | NZDT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zone from UTC | −10 h | −9 h | −8 h | −7 h | −6 h | −5 h | 0 h | +3 h | +5½ h | +7 h | +8 h | +9 h | +11 h | +13 h |
| Penumbral eclipse begins | 00:51 | 01:51 | 02:51 | 03:51 | 04:51 | 05:51 | 10:51 | 13:51 | — | 17:51 | 18:51 | 19:51 | 21:51 | 23:51 |
| Partial eclipse begins | 01:48 | 02:48 | 03:48 | 04:48 | 05:48 | 06:48 | 11:48 | 14:48 | 17:18 | 18:48 | 19:48 | 20:48 | 22:48 | 00:48 |
| Total eclipse begins | 02:52 | 03:52 | 04:52 | 05:52 | 06:52 | — | 12:52 | 15:52 | 18:22 | 19:52 | 20:52 | 21:52 | 23:52 | 01:52 |
| Mid-eclipse | 03:30 | 04:30 | 05:30 | 06:30 | — | — | 13:30 | 16:30 | 19:00 | 20:30 | 21:30 | 22:30 | 00:30 | 02:30 |
| Total eclipse ends | 04:08 | 05:08 | 06:08 | 07:08 | — | — | 14:08 | 17:08 | 19:38 | 21:08 | 22:08 | 23:08 | 01:08 | 03:08 |
| Partial eclipse ends | 05:11 | 06:11 | 07:11 | — | — | — | 15:11 | 18:11 | 20:41 | 22:11 | 23:11 | 00:11 | 02:11 | 04:11 |
| Penumbral eclipse ends | 06:08 | 07:08 | — | — | — | — | 16:08 | 19:08 | 21:38 | 23:08 | 00:08 | 01:08 | 03:08 | 05:08 |
Example in Aichi Prefecture, Japan:
1. Full moon (supermoon) 20:23 (JST)
2. Partial lunar eclipse 21:13 (JST)
3. Partial lunar eclipse 21:43 (JST)
4. Total lunar eclipse (blood moon) 21:55 (JST)
.jpg)
Gallery
Total or near total
George Town, Penang, Malaysia
22:16 MST (UTC+8)
Kerala, India
Kerala, India
Chiang Mai, Thailand 19:56 ICT, 2 views, as the camera registered it and how spectators saw it.
Montages
Lunar eclipse of 2018 January 31, in Aichi Prefcture, Japan
Lunar eclipse of 2018 January 31, in Aichi Prefcture, Japan
.jpg)
.jpg)
Partial
Related eclipses
The January 2018 lunar eclipse is the first ascending node eclipse of the Lunar eclipse series sets from 2016–2020. It is also part of Saros cycle 124. Template:Lunar eclipse set 2016-2020
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Super Blue Moon eclipse on January 31, Earthsky.org, January 30 2018
- ↑ "'Super Blue Blood Moon' Coming Jan. 31, 2018". NASA. January 18, 2018. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
- ↑ Blue moon, based on the previous full moon, was either on November 30 or December 1, 1982 based on time zones.
- ↑ Rare 'Super Blue Blood Moon' Coming—First in 35 Years, National Geographic, January 29, 2018
- ↑ Mathewson, Samantha (January 30, 2018). "The Super Blue Blood Moon Wednesday Is Something the US Hasn't Seen Since 1866". Space.com. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
- ↑ Fred Espenak & Jean Meeus. "Visual Appearance of Lunar Eclipses". NASA. Retrieved April 13, 2014.
- ↑ Gill, Victoria (31 January 2018). "Skywatchers see 'super blue blood Moon'". BBC News. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Rao, Joe. "First Blue Moon Total Lunar Eclipse in 150 Years Coming This Month". Space.com. Retrieved 2018-01-02.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lunar eclipse of 2018 January 31. |
