First time in 152 years: supermoon, blue moon, and total lunar eclipse

[JGeropoulas]

A lunar "trifecta" is coming that's ripe for scientific and esoteric interpretation. Check out the great photographs at the link below.

For the first time in 152 years, a supermoon, blue moon, and total lunar eclipse will coincide
Karen Hao
Quartz online
January 26, 2018

On the night of Jan. 31, it doesn’t matter what you’re doing—you owe it to yourself to gaze at the sky.

When you do, you will be treated to both a visible supermoon—what we call a full moon at its closest orbital point to Earth—and a total lunar eclipse. The celestial coincidence hasn’t happened in more than 150 years. That means there were people who lived and died on this Earth without ever having had a chance to see this phenomenon, which won’t reappear again for another decade.

This supermoon also happens to be the final one in a supermoon trilogy—the first two of which appeared on Dec. 3 and Jan. 1. As the second full moon of the month, it earns the title of a blue moon as well.
And get ready for the blood moon

The moon on the night of Jan. 31 is, by a combination of low probabilities, exceedingly rare.

Visible supermoons appear 14% bigger and 30% brighter than full moons that occur at the farthest point in the moon’s orbit. During the eclipse, with totality visible from eastern Asia across the Pacific to western North America, the moon will slowly lose its brightness and take on a reddish hue because of the way the atmosphere bends the light, says NASA.

As a result, totally eclipsed moons are sometimes also called “blood moons.”

When can I see the supermoon and total lunar eclipse?

The best time to enjoy a supermoon is right after moonrise and before sunrise, when the moon is sitting on the horizon. It will appear its biggest and brightest because of a “moon illusion” effect that’s created when you are able to compare the lunar body to other objects for scale, like buildings and foliage. Check your local moonrise time here.

For the real highlight of the show, the lunar eclipse will begin at 6:48am ET (11:48am UTC) and reach its maximum at 8:30am ET (1:30pm UTC). Viewers from eastern Asia, the Pacific, and western North America will get the best view, but viewers in eastern North America and Europe will also catch a partial eclipse. Here’s an interactive map of where you will be able to see the eclipse.

https://qz.com/1189777/a-supermoon-and-total-lunar-eclipse-will-coincide-for-the-first-time-in-152-years/

 

[angelburst29]

Where to watch online as a rare blood, blue and super moon passes through the Earth’s shadow.

Watch Wednesday’s SuperBlueBlood Moon Online at These Streaming Sites
https://sputniknews.com/world/201801291061143972-live-stream-lunar-eclipse/

The January 31 super, blue and blood moon — the first in some 150 years — will be viewable by many on the surface of our planet, unless it's cloudy. If it is cloudy, or if you don't live in the area where you can see it, here's where to access a hi-def live stream that will enable viewers to watch the glorious celestial progression of our only natural satellite.

People in western Canada, California, Alaska, Hawaii, Australia and parts of eastern Asia will — weather permitting — see a full lunar eclipse (the blood moon) that is also a supermoon (when the moon is at its closest point to the Earth) and, somewhat lyrically, a second full moon in one month (the storied ‘blue moon').

But if you are not somewhere you can simply go outside and see it, here is a list of online locations hosting a live webcast of the rare event.

NASA will stream the moon live beginning at 5:30 a.m. EST (1030 GMT).

If you find that NASA's site is overburdened and running slow, Space.com, will also provide the live stream at the same times.

You can also follow the webcast on @NASAMoon, NASA's lunar Twitter account, if you are so inclined.

Beginning at 5:45 a.m. EST (1045 GMT), the Slooh telescope will live stream the 5 hour and 17 minute eclipse. Slooh spokespeople will narrate the progress of our satellite beginning 7 a.m. EST (1200 GMT), offering lunar science and mythology.

The Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, California, will live stream the eclipse beginning 5:45 a.m. (1045 GMT) until 10 a.m. EST (1500 GMT).

The Virtual Telescope Project will also live stream the eclipse with source material in Australia and the US beginning 6:30 a.m. EST (1130 GMT) until 11 a.m. EST (1600 GMT).