30 May 2012

Partial Lunar Eclipse of June 2012

Early in the morning hours of Monday June 4, west coast viewers will witness a partial lunar eclipse. This follows the dramatic Ring of Fire Solar Eclipse by roughly two weeks, the interval from a New Moon (with the Moon causing the solar eclipse) to the Full Moon (with Earth causing the lunar eclipse). These are two events in an Eclipse Season, and as should be expected, if one event is really great (the annular solar eclipse) the next will be less impressive (just a partial lunar eclipse).

Nonetheless, it's always a treat to see an eclipse of the Moon, and this one will be a nice sight, starting at 3:00 am for viewers in the pacific time zone, peaking around 4:00 am, and ending around 5:00 am as the light of dawn starts to break. EarthSky has some good images.

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

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