A Blood Moon worth getting up early for
Our ancestors feared Blood Moons, but Wednesday's Lunar eclipse is a rare event we're lucky to be able to view from Denver skies.
According to The International Dark-Sky Association, there hasn’t been a total lunar eclipse for nearly 2.5 years. The last full eclipse was January 21, 2019.
Not everyone will be able to see the full eclipse as it will turn red just as it's setting in US skies. West Coast residents, Denver's included, will thankfully be able to see the full eclipse.
It will also be visible in Australia, New Zealand, and some of South/East Asia and South America. Most East Coast US residents will still be able to see a partial eclipse.
Not Just an Eclipse
This Wednesday's eclipse is even more special because it's a Super Moon, Blood Moon, and Lunar eclipse.
Super Moons occur when the moon orbits closest to the earth while it's full. This makes them appear larger than normal: a stunning sight!
Wednesday's Supermoon is called a "Super Flower Moon" named after the many flowers in bloom at this time of year. And that's not all!
"This particular eclipse is special because the totality, or total phase, is so short-lived, lasting less than 15 minutes," says EarthSky.
In Denver the best times to view the totality (the phase when the moon is fully eclipsed and red) will be 5:18am according to timeanddate.com. The moon will be low in Denver's southwestern sky and will turn red a little before setting.
Find a place with good visibility of the horizon and low light pollution for the best views.
5 phases to watch
There are actually five phases in an eclipse. If you want to view the entire eclipse, it begins in Denver at 2:47am--turning a dull grey--and ends at 5:43am when the red color fades back to grey again.
What's a Lunar Eclipse?
Lunar eclipses occur when the moon, Earth, and sun all line up. We see the eclipse as the moon moves into the Earth's shadow.
According to EarthSky "A total lunar eclipse can only happen at full moon, or when the moon is opposite the sun in Earth’s sky."
The bent light passing through our atmosphere makes the moon appear red. (Similar to how we get red and orange sun sets and sun rises.)
The weather on Wednesday in Denver is expected to be partly sunny, so here's hoping we'll have good visibilty for the morning. Set your alarm Tuesday night and fingers crossed!