The Moon slides through the Earth's shadowthis Saturday night / Sunday morning (November 8/9) givingskygazers in the Americas, Europe,Africa, and western Asia a chance t enjoy a total lunar eclipse.A lunar eclipses go,this will be a brief onethough, with the total phase lasting only about 25 minutes.The orientation and relative size of th Earth's shadowand the Moon's trajectory are illustrated in this thoughtfulanimation showing the full Moon moving up from the lower right,entering the penumbra or outer portion of the shadow region,and then passing well below the center of the darker inner shadow regionor umbra.The tota eclipse phase beginsat 1:06 Universal Time, November 9(8:06pm EST Nov. 8 whenthe Moon is completely within the umbra.While the off-center passage guarantees a short total phase, italso makes it likely that this November's eclipsed Moon will bedramatically visible and colorfulwith a brighter rim along thesouthern edge.
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