Total eclipses of the Moon are fun. During one of these events, the entire Moon passes through Earth’s umbra, the innermost and darkest part of its shadow.
A total lunar eclipse generally lasts for hours, requires no equipment to see, and is completely safe to look at — no filter required. There’s no blinding Sun in the sky; all we’re watching is Earth’s shadow fall across Luna’s face. And on the morning of Wednesday, May 26, many observers on our planet’s night side will see that happen.
The most recent total lunar eclipse occurred Jan. 21, 2019. The last one visible in the continental U.S. happened July 27, 2018. Since then, amateur astronomers have been counting the days for the Sun, Earth, and the Moon (in that order) to line up once again.
The only “bad” news is that totality during this eclipse is brief. It lasts a scant 14 minutes 31 seconds. Although that’s short for lunar totality, it’s almost twice as long as the longest solar eclipse totality possible. So, make plans now to view this event. There’s lots of cool stuff to see.
Where and when?
The entire eclipse will be visible throughout Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, Chile, Argentina, and western North America. In the U.S., those who position themselves as far west as possible will have the best views.
The eclipse begins at 4:47:39 a.m. (all times are Eastern Daylight Time), when the Moon enters Earth’s penumbra — its lighter, outer shadow. Our satellite enters the umbra at 5:44:59 a.m., signaling the start of the first partial phase of the eclipse. Totality begins at 7:11:27 a.m. and lasts until 7:25:58 a.m. From there, the event plays itself out in reverse, with the partial phase ending at 8:52:26 a.m. Finally, more than five hours after the Moon first entered Earth’s outer shadow, it fully exits the penumbra at 9:49:47 a.m., officially ending the eclipse.
Totality is so brief during the May 26 eclipse because the Moon doesn’t pass through the center of our planet’s umbra. Instead, Luna’s northern edge passes just inside the umbra’s northern limit. In contrast, its southern edge lies a lot closer to the shadow’s center, so the Moon’s southern half will look much darker than its northern half. Because the Moon crosses a large range of the shadow’s depths throughout totality, the appearance of its face will change significantly as the eclipse progresses.