There’s a Full Moon Approaching

It will be here Friday (June 5, 2020) and in the wee hours of Saturday morning, there will be a penumbral lunar eclipse.

An eclipse of this kind happens when the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon are not perfectly aligned causing the Earth to prevent only some of the Sun’s light from reaching the surface of the Moon.

And thus, unlike the dramatic reddening we see at totality during a partial or total lunar eclipse – caused when the Moon enters the dark inner umbra of the Earth’s shadow – during a penumbral eclipse the Moon only enters the outer part of the Earth’s shadow – the penumbra.

Often described as a subtle affair, it can (at times) be a little difficult to see depending on how much of the Earth’s shadow falls across the face of the Moon. In my books, it’s still worth setting the alarm to get out of bed to enjoy, even if it will be cold as well as dark.

With Winter officially commencing three days ago, our temperatures have been a little chilly.

The eclipse duration will be 2 hours, 49 minutes (and 23 seconds) with the Moon entering the penumbra at 3:45 am on June 6 (AEST). It will reach maximum at 5:24 am with the Moon setting at 6:35 am – perfect for being outside when the temperature will most likely be around 11°C. Nothing a snuggle jumper won’t fix.

I have my tripod ready and have been playing with more setting on my camera. All I need to do now is pray for clear skies.

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See if the eclipse is visible from where you live on TimeandDate.com.