Post by Joanna on Jan 30, 2018 2:05:31 GMT -5
Super Blue Snow Moon Jan. 31, 2018
Skywatchers in Alaska, the Hawaiian islands and the western part of the U.S. and Canada will have the best view of the rare eclipse of the “Super Blue Snow Moon” in the early morning of January 31. This spectacular lunar event features the second full moon of the month, also known as a Blue Moon. The Snow Moon is the full moon in February, so named because of the snowy conditions. Some North American Indian tribes called it the Hunger Moon because food sources were scarce at this time of the year.
What’s more, this year’s Snow Moon occurs during perigee – when the moon’s closest approach to Earth in a single orbit make it appear 7 percent larger and 14 percent brighter than usual, making it a supermoon. This is the first time in more than 150 years that the three lunar events will coincide, according to NASA. “For the U.S., the viewing will be best in the west,” Gordon Johnston, program executive and lunar blogger at NASA headquarters in Washington, said. “Set your alarm early and go out and take a look.” On January 31, the Super Blue Snow Moon will be visible before sunrise in North America, Alaska and Hawaii. However, viewers in the Middle East, Asia, eastern Russia, Australia and New Zealand will see the eclipse during moonrise in the morning.
Specifically, skywatchers on the west coast of the U.S. will see the lunar eclipse begin at 3:48 a.m. PST. Totality will start around 4:51 a.m. and last until 6:05 a.m. Viewers in this area will experience the lunar eclipse from start to finish, as long as it isn’t a cloudy.
For viewers on the east coast, the window of opportunity to see the lunar eclipse won’t be as large. “Unfortunately, eclipse-viewing will be more challenging in the Eastern Time zone,” Johnston continued. “The eclipse begins at 5:51 a.m. EST, as the moon is about to set in the western sky, and the sky is getting lighter in the east.” The eclipse won’t be as noticeable on the east coast because the moon is expected to enter only the outer part of Earth’s shadow at 5:51 a.m. EST. It is not until 6:48 a.m. EST that the darker part of Earth’s shadow will begin to blanket the moon and create the blood-red tint – and the moon will set in less than a half-hour.
For those of you who won’t see much of the eclipse and want to enjoy the Snow Moon in the evening, moonrise on January 31 is as follows:
Eastport, Maine: 5:56 p.m.
Jacksonville, Florida: 6:26 p.m.
Hannibal, Missouri: 5:50 p.m.
Roswell, New Mexico: 5:57 p.m.
Salem, Oregon: 5:51 p.m.
Sources: Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, January 23, 2018, and The Old Farmer’s Almanac.