![]() ![]() For North Americans, the farther west you go the better the view as the sun rises in the east-northeast, the moon will be going down on the opposite side of the sky in the west-southwest. Observers across the central and eastern United States and Canada should pay particular attention to the full moon at or shortly before sunrise early on Wednesday morning, for as we noted earlier for this part of the country, the eclipse will just be starting when the moon sets, putting an abrupt end to this shady little drama. This allows us to see the moon for several extra minutes after it has set and the sun for several extra minutes before it actually rises. While such a sun-Earth-moon alignment would seem to make this observation impossible, remember that the images of both sun and moon are apparently "lifted" above the horizon, thanks to refraction by Earth's atmosphere. Related: How the 'supermoon' looks (infographic) A strange moonsetĪn interesting observation to attempt is to try and see the partially eclipsed setting moon and the rising sun simultaneously. These two factors, combined with the fact that the moon is barely skimming just within the northernmost part of the umbra, are the main reasons why this eclipse - ballyhooed by many because of the moon's large apparent size - will have such a short duration of totality. ![]() In addition, when it's near perigee, the moon is moving a bit faster than normal, again shortening the time it will spend completely immersed in Earth's shadow. So, a larger-than-normal moon transiting a smaller-than-normal umbral shadow will end up being totally eclipsed for a shorter period of time. For lunar eclipses that occur during late spring and early summer, the diameter of the Earth's dark umbral shadow is about 12% smaller compared to late fall and early winter. However, be aware that such a situation actually ends up shortening the duration of totality. At that moment, its distance from Earth will be 222,124 miles (357,474 km), resulting in the largest full moon in apparent size in 2021 - about 7.7% larger than normal. The moon will arrive at perigee at 0155 GMT on May 26 and officially turns full 9 hours and 19 minutes later. Many online sites are playing up the fact that this particular full moon will also be a " supermoon" - that is, a full moon that more or less coincides with its arrival at the perigee (closest point) in its orbit around Earth. Times of stages for total lunar eclipse of Time Zone: ![]()
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