Nov. 19 is the last chance this year to see a partial – although nearly total – lunar eclipse.
To view it involves being up early in the morning. And there’s a chance clouds will block it out. But there is a way to see it from indoors. (And it’s not, “Look out the window or through the skylight.”) More about that in a minute.
The eclipse will begin at 1:02 a.m. Friday (local Eastern Standard Time), when the outside edge of the Earth’s shadow touches the edge of the moon. About an hour later (2:18 a.m.) the moon will begin to take on a red shade as it moves closer to the center of the Earth’s shadow.
The maximum eclipse will occur at 4:02 a.m., when about 97% of the moon’s surface will be covered by the Earth’s shadow. At that point, the Moon will be almost directly west, and about 36 degrees above the horizon.
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The partial eclipse will end at 5:47 a.m.
For what it’s worth, the extended forecast for Lakeland area weather is “rain late; overcast” for Thursday the 18th, and for Friday, the morning of the eclipse, “showers early; decreasing cloudiness.”
Keep in mind that this is Florida, where it is not wise to make long-range weather forecasts and barely advisable to make short-range ones.
If you want to stay indoors, or if clouds are overhead, there is a computer option. YouTube will be carrying a live feed of the moon. The website can be found at www.tinyurl.com/LunarNov19.
The website also advises that this is the longest eclipse of the century.
How’s that for a heads-up?
Lonnie Brown can be reached at LedgerDatabase@aol.com.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Next week’s lunar eclipse will be early in the morning, and might be cloudy
