Alert: Go look up at the moon now : 10th Dec lunar Eclipse
now the moon is forming the eclipse...probably till 10plus then back to full again...probably till midnight..enjoy ;)
The total lunar eclipse is visible just after sunset.
The eclipse sequence ( 10 Dec 2011 - Singapore Time) is as shown:
7.31 pm - Start of Penumbra Eclipse.
8.45 pm - Start of Umbra Partial Phase.
10.05 pm - Start of Total Eclipse.
10.31 pm - Maximum Eclipse.
10.57 pm - End of Total Eclipse.
12.18 am - End of Umbra Partial Eclipse.
1.31 am - End of Penumbra Eclipse.
A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes behind the Earth so that the Earth blocks the Sun's rays from striking the Moon. This can occur only when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are aligned exactly, or very closely so, with the Earth in the middle. Hence, a lunar eclipse can only occur the night of a full moon. The type and length of an eclipse depend upon the Moon's location relative to its orbital nodes. The most recent total lunar eclipse occurred on June 15, 2011; it was a central eclipse, visible over Europe and South America after sunset, over Africa and most of Asia, and Australia before sunrise. It lasted 100 minutes. The previous total lunar eclipse occurred on December 21, 2010, at 08:17 UTC.[1]
Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a certain relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of the Earth. A lunar eclipse lasts for a few hours, whereas a total solar eclipse lasts for only a few minutes at any given place, due to the smaller size of the moon's shadow.
