On Wednesday, May 26, you may be able to see the most unique full moon of 2021: a “super flower blood moon.” The date will be a confluence of phenomena, including a supermoon, a blood moon and a “flower moon,” according to a report by NASA. The visibility of this spectacle will depend greatly on the conditions in your part of the globe.
Astronomers at NASA explain that a supermoon occurs when the moon appears larger in the night sky than usual because it is at its closest point to the Earth in its orbit. Meanwhile, a blood moon occurs during a total lunar eclipse — when the Earth is positioned between the moon and the sun. Finally, a “Flower Moon” is the name for the May full moon because of the spring bloom in the northern hemisphere. It just so happens that this year’s Flower moon coincides with the second supermoon of the year, and scientists expect it to be the biggest.
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The trickiest part of observing the “super flower blood moon” will be the blood moon aspect, according to NASA. The blood moon is named for its red glow, which appears because it is blocked from sunlight. “When this happens, the only light that reaches the moon’s surface is from the edges of the Earth’s atmosphere,” NASA explains.
“The air molecules from Earth’s atmosphere scatter out most of the blue light. The remaining light reflects onto the moon’s surface with a red glow, making the moon appear red in the night sky,” the agency continues. “Just how red it will look is hard to predict, but dust in the atmosphere can have an effect. (And keep in mind there have been a couple of prominent volcanic eruptions recently).”
Still, NASA says that you will be able to see the “super flower blood moon” from just about anywhere on the planet, at least to some extent. The agency advises those in the U.S. to take a look when the conditions will be clearest, which varies by region. In the eastern half of the country, they expect that to be around dawn twilight, so you’ll want to wake up early to see it.
NASA says that the eclipse will last about 14 minutes in total, but it will peak at around 7:19 a.m. ET. That means those on the east coast are more likely to be awake, although the agency says those in Hawaii, Alaska and other western states will have the best view if they are up.
Meanwhile, the show will be even more spectacular in Asia since the moon will be rising there at the time. If you miss it live or you want to get a better view, you can check out a live stream of the eclipse from The Virtual Telescope Project here. It will begin at 6 a.m. ET on Wednesday, May 26.
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