Photo courtesy of Gauri Kaushik '23. An enhanced photo taken with the unistellar telescope at the John Payston Williston Observatory.
By Shira Sadeh ‘25
Science & Environment Editor
The Earth and moon aligned with the sun on Nov. 8, 2022, to form the second total lunar eclipse of the year, and the last one until 2025, ABC News reported. The article explained that a total lunar eclipse is caused by the perfect alignment of the sun, Earth and moon, when the moon passes directly through the Earth’s shadow. NASA reported that totality occurred between 5:17 and 6:42 a.m. EST with partial and penumbral phases ending at 8:50 a.m. EST.
According to NASA, lunar eclipses happen during a full moon when the Earth’s shadow falls on the moon, creating a reddish hue on the moon’s surface, which is visible to half of the Earth. This eclipse was visible in areas in North, Central and South America, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, NASA said.
Often called a “blood moon” due to its redness, the Moon blushes during a lunar eclipse due to a process called Rayleigh scattering — the same process that causes the sky to appear blue, the NASA article said. Light traveling in waves has different wavelengths based on the color of the light. While blue light has a shorter wavelength and scatters more easily, red light has a longer wavelength and does not scatter as easily. As light passes through the Earth’s atmosphere blue light scatters due to dust and clouds, but red light is able to make it through intact and reach the moon, NASA explained.
NASA explained that although there will not be another total lunar eclipse until 2025, there will be some partial and penumbral eclipses. In a partial eclipse, the sun, Earth and moon are not perfectly aligned, resulting in the moon only passing through the Earth’s umbra, or the innermost part of the Earth’s inner shadow, NASA reported. This means that the shadow — and its projection onto the moon — never fully covers the moon as it grows and recedes. A penumbral eclipse similarly means an imperfect alignment, which results in the moon passing through the Earth’s penumbra, or the outer and fainter part of the Earth’s shadow. In this case, the moon dims slightly, but often not enough for it to be noticeable, NASA said.
Photo courtesy of Gauri Kaushik '23. A blood moon appeared in total lunar eclipse.
According to NASA, the next eclipse will be an annular solar eclipse on Oct. 14, 2023. NASA claims that this eclipse will be visible across North, Central and South America, but specialized eye protection is required to safely view the event. An annular eclipse means that the moon will pass directly between the sun and the Earth when it is at its furthest point, NASA reported. The distance from the Earth causes the moon to appear smaller than the sun, creating what NASA called a “ring of fire” in the dark sky.