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Sky watchers admiring the November full moon will also have the opportunity to see another treat: a penumbra eclipse, when the moon passes through Earth’s outer shadow on Monday, November 30, according to NASA.
The moon will only be at its maximum for a moment – on Mondays, this happens at 4:30 a.m. EST (9:30 UTC) – but the moon will appear full for three days: from Saturday evening to Tuesday morning (November 28 to December 1).
During this time, sky-watchers must remember three times to catch the penumbra eclipse: it begins before the full moon at 2:32 a.m. EST (7:32 a.m. UTC); peaks at 4:42 a.m. EST (9:42 a.m. UTC), when 83% of the moon will be covered by the weak shadow of the Earth; and ends at 6:53 am EST (11:53 am UTC) Monday morning, according to timeanddate.com.
Related: In photos: sparkling images of a super moon
Penumbra eclipses are different from full or partial eclipses. During a total lunar eclipse, the Earth passes directly between the sun and the moon, preventing sunlight from reaching our natural satellite. In contrast, during a partial eclipse, the moon passes through part of the Earth’s dark inner shadow, known as the shadow. Finally, during a penumbra eclipse, the moon passes through part of the weaker outer penumbra shadow of the Earth, according to Space.com, a sister site of Live Science.
Unless you are a seasoned skywatcher, it can be difficult to see the November penumbra eclipse, which will be visible in North America (as long as there is no cloudy sky), as the penumbra shadow will appear as a dark veil. “The darkening of the moon during this eclipse is unlikely to be noticeable without instrumentation, but for spacecraft on the moon such as the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), the reduction in solar energy will be noticeable.” NASA wrote in a statement.
The November Full Moon, known to many as the Beaver Moon, comes at the end of the month this year because October had two full moons; the second moon, a blue Moon, was the first time in 76 years that a full moon was visible across the United States on Halloween. Other names for the November full moon include the cold moon, frozen moon, winter moon, oak moon, moon before Yule, and childish moon. The full moon will also be celebrated during Kartik Purnima (a Hindu, Sikh and Jain cultural festival, celebrated differently by each culture), Karthika Deepam (a festival of lights observed by some Hindus), Tazaungdaing Festival Moon (observed by bhudists in Myanmar , formerly Burma) and Ill Poya (celebrated in Sri Lanka), NASA reported.
The beaver moon is the last full moon before the winter solstice, the shortest day of sunshine in the northern hemisphere, which falls on December 21 of this year. Other celestial observations to look for in late November and early December include “Jupiter and Saturn, [which] will appear progressively closer to each other, appearing closer than the apparent diameter of the Moon from December 17 to 25, “NASA reported.” They will appear at their closest, about a fifth of the Moon’s diameter, on December. 21, 2020. “
People with backyard telescopes should be able to see Jupiter’s four luminous moons: Ganymede, Callisto, Europa, and Io, and even the brightly lit rings of Saturn and Titan, its largest moon. “Seeing Jupiter and Saturn so close to each other should look spectacular to the telescope and to the naked eye,” NASA said.
For those missing the November moon, they can always plan to see the last full moon of 2020, which will light up the night sky at 10:28 p.m. EST on December 29 (3:28 a.m. UTC on December 30).
Originally posted on Live Science.
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