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+--- Thread: Lunar eclipse Monday evening (/showthread.php?tid=4482)
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Lunar eclipse Monday evening - PaulW - 04-13-2014
Just hoping the weather is good. We're having this at a much more convenient time than most people.
http://khon2.com/2014/04/08/what-to-look-for-during-next-weeks-total-lunar-eclipse/
Does this affect the work on Mauna Kea, TomK?
ETA: Maximum eclipse at 9:46PM Monday
RE: Lunar eclipse Monday evening - TomK - 04-13-2014
Paul, I doubt it'll have any effect on work at the MK observatories other than people lucky enough to be at the summit going out to photograph it (boy, I wish I could be up there tomorrow with my camera)!. A full moon is actually a real pain for the optical/IR observatories as it 1) gets in the way and 2) brightens the sky considerably for the optical folk. The eclipse won't change that very much.
For those who want to see it and have no experience of seeing a lunar eclipse, this is a good opportunity. The Moon will start to turn red in the early evening and you may see the shadow of the Earth crossing the moon. As Paul mentions, the full eclipse is around 9:45pm, but because the Earth's shadow is large the full eclipse starts around 9:05pm and ends just after 11:30pm (unlike a solar eclipse which is much shorter as the moon's shadow is so small). Through that time you should see the moon turn blood red. The actual start of the eclipse is around 6:55pm for us and ends about 35 minutes after midnight.
I haven't checked the local weather forecast, but the last (Friday) forecast from MKWC suggests there should be few mid-level clouds around Monday night, so if conditions look bad locally, a good place to watch the eclipse might be on the Saddle road or at the VIS on the Mauna Kea access road at 9000 ft. No guarantees from me though! The MKWC forecast will update on monday - link is here - http://mkwc.ifa.hawaii.edu/forecast/mko/
This one's really well timed for us here. Cosmos on in 15 minutes, so at least I'll get to see that (assuming power stays on...).
RE: Lunar eclipse Monday evening - opihikao - 04-14-2014
Thank you, TomK, and PaulW. Great info! Worth keeping the mo'opuna up to see the event. Enjoy!
RE: Lunar eclipse Monday evening - TomK - 04-14-2014
Incidentally, if you are watching the eclipse this evening and are wondering what the bright "star" is above the moon, it's the planet Mars. It's at its closest approach to Earth in seven years.
RE: Lunar eclipse Monday evening - Delta9r - 04-14-2014
Pouring rain here in Kurtistown, but we got a few glimpses of the crescent, going toward the full eclipse. Hoping for more clear sky...
Thanks for the info re Mars. @ TomK
"Life is labor, and all that is good in life comes from that labor..."
RE: Lunar eclipse Monday evening - alaskyn66 - 04-14-2014
Visible in Hilo.. Nice since it was raining 10 minutes ago.
RE: Lunar eclipse Monday evening - TomK - 04-14-2014
Really nice view here (lower HPP). Been sitting with the neighbours watching the sky. Clouds passing through, but the eclipse is stunning. The moon is a deep brown-red and it almost has a 3-d effect as if you can actually tell the moon is a sphere rather than just a bright round thing in the sky. I've seen lunar eclipses before, but this is the best one I've watched so far. Hope everyone who wants to see it has at least a few gaps between the clouds.
RE: Lunar eclipse Monday evening - Obie - 04-14-2014
Pretty impressive down in Kapoho !!
RE: Lunar eclipse Monday evening - Andrew - 04-14-2014
We had a real nice view in Leilani of the eclipse as the moon started to turn red until it was fully red. Also very interesting about Mars which we had a nice view of as well. Then clouds rolled in and covered the sky. It was super while it lasted.
RE: Lunar eclipse Monday evening - TomK - 04-14-2014
Opihikao - I hope the mo'opuna were able to witness the eclipse. There is nothing better than kids actually seeing an astronomical event with their own eyes to get them interested in science, and we need kids to be interested in the subject for their own future and the future of the planet.
Well, perhaps watching Star Trek is the other way. That's how it worked for our generation! But seeing something unusual happen in the sky, just as science predicted it would, will hopefully have some influence on their interest in science and the choices they make for their future.