For Santiago de Chile, near where we hope to observe this phenomena, this will occur:
Begins: Sun, 27 Sep 2015, 21:11
Maximum: Sun, 27 Sep 2015, 23:47
Ends: Mon, 28 Sep 2015, 02:22
Duration: 5 hours, 11 minutes
The venue for our observation of the eclipse will be the Cerro El Franciscano, 3,600m in La Parva, shown here with some of my turns from yesterday, just below the peak:
Nasa says:
“Because the orbit of the moon is not a perfect circle, the moon is sometimes closer to the Earth than at other times during its orbit,” said Noah Petro, deputy project scientist for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “When the moon is farthest away it’s known as apogee, and when it’s closest it’s known as perigee. On Sept. 27, we’re going to have a perigee full moon—the closest full moon of the year.
At perigee, the moon is about 31,000 miles closer to Earth than at apogee. That distance equates to more than once around the circumference of Earth. Its looming proximity makes the moon appear 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter in the sky than an apogee full moon, which sparked the term “supermoon.”
A lunar eclipse typically puts on an even greater show. But the proverbial stars only align for this event once every few decades, making this phenomenon much rarer than a supermoon or a lunar eclipse separately. The last supermoon/lunar eclipse combination occurred in 1982 and the next won’t happen until 2033. “That’s rare because it’s something an entire generation may not have seen,” said Petro.
Nasa discusses the super moon eclipse
According to Spaceweather.com:
Sky watchers in the Americas, Europa, Africa, and eastern parts of Asia can see the event. The next total eclipse of the Moon won’t come until January 31, 2018, so if you live in the eclipse zone, check it out.
What makes the eclipsed Moon turn red? A quick trip to the Moon provides the answer: Imagine yourself standing on a dusty lunar plain looking up at the sky. Overhead hangs Earth, nightside down, completely hiding the sun behind it. The eclipse is underway.
You might expect Earth seen in this way to be utterly dark, but it’s not. The rim of the planet looks like it is on fire. As you scan your eye around Earth’s circumference, you’re seeing every sunrise and every sunset in the world, all of them, all at once. This incredible light beams into the heart of Earth’s shadow, filling it with a coppery glow and transforming the Moon into a great red orb.
Red isn’t the only color. There’s also turquoise. Its source is ozone. Atmospheric scientist Richard Keen of the University of Colorado explains: “During a lunar eclipse, most of the light illuminating the moon passes through the stratosphere where it is reddened by scattering. However, light passing through the upper stratosphere penetrates the ozone layer, which absorbs red light and actually makes the passing light ray bluer.” This can be seen, he says, as a soft blue fringe around the red core of Earth’s shadow.
To catch the turquoise on Sept. 27-28, he advises, “look during the first and last minutes of totality. The turquoise rim is best seen in binoculars or a small telescope.”
http://www.spaceweather.com/
GET OUT AND ENJOY THE SHOW!
