A partial lunar eclipse will be visible from the UK this weekend, coinciding with the full Hunter Moon.
A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth is directly between the Sun and the Moon, meaning the Earth’s shadow falls on the Moon.
During a total lunar eclipse, as the Royal Greenwich Observatory explains, “all three bodies – the Sun, Earth and Moon – lie in a straight line.” shadow.
However, during the partial lunar eclipse we’ll experience this weekend, only part of the Moon passes through the entire Earth’s shadow.
When will there be a lunar eclipse?
IN Saturday, October 28 A partial lunar eclipse will be visible from the UK. It is also published in the rest of Europe, Asia, Africa and Western Australia.
It starts in 20:35 BST and ends at 21:52.
The Royal Greenwich Observatory said: “From the UK we will only see a small part of the full Moon passing in shadow. At the maximum, which occurs at 21:15, only 12 percent will be in the Earth’s shadow, and 6 percent will be in the shadow.”
How can I see this from the UK?
You don’t need a telescope to see a lunar eclipse, but using one will give you a better view.
Another great way to get a closer look is to use a digital camera, with the added benefit of being able to take multiple photos.
Astronomer Tom Kerss advises: “To magnify the image, you should use the longest lens possible, and this is because, although we tend to think of the Moon as a large object in the sky, it is actually quite small.”
“If you want to zoom in to minimize camera shake in your photos, it’s best to use a tripod and a remote shutter release if you have one.”
Why is this full moon called the Hunter’s Moon?
Most pre-modern calendars used the Moon as the basis for month names, and this convention ended with the introduction of the Julian and Gregorian solar calendars.
In modern times, the names of full moons—and their purported meanings—have entered popular culture, usually attributed to Native American tribes.
According to Laura Redish, director and co-founder of Native Languages of America, there is no standardized Native American calendar, although NASA says the names originate from the Algonquin tribe, part of a larger cultural language group called Algonquin.
Giving each full moon a unique name was an important way to keep track of the seasons and effectively divide the year into months.
According to a list published in 2005 by the Algonquin Tribal Council, some of the colloquially used names, such as “Strawberry Moon” and “Harvest Moon”, appear Algonquian, while others do not.
The American magazine Farmer’s Almanac, which is apparently considered the gold standard for modern moon names, first published its list of moon names in the 1930s:
- January: Wolf Moon
- February: Snow Moon
- March: Worm Moon
- April: pink moon
- May: Flower Moon
- June: Strawberry Moon
- July: Buck Moon.
- August: Sturgeon Moon
- September: Harvest Moon
- October: Hunter’s Moon.
- November: Beaver Moon
- December: cold moon
According to the Farmer’s Almanac, the Hunter’s Moon gets its name because it occurs at a time when “game is fattening for winter and food is needed for the long cold months ahead.”
Therefore, it was the time of year when hunters went out to hunt and stock up on supplies for their villages.
Source: I News
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