Near-total lunar eclipse is coming up with the Americas in prime position
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Now it’s the moon’s turn to pull a disappearing act. After being shut out of this month’s total solar eclipse, the Americas will have the best seats in the celestial house when Earth’s shadow briefly envelops the moon. Almost the…
The moon will soon undergo a near-total eclipse, with the Americas in an ideal position to witness it. This celestial event will occur on Thursday night into Friday, with an impressive 96% of the lunar surface obscured. NASA has been busy, dispatching astronauts on a record-breaking lunar flyby in April, paving the way for future missions to establish a permanent base on the moon's surface.
Astronaut Jack Hathaway, currently aboard the International Space Station, expressed excitement about the ongoing space program's momentum. This lunar eclipse follows a total solar eclipse that recently traversed Greenland, Iceland, and Spain. Eclipses occur in pairs due to the precise alignment of the sun, moon, and Earth, with the moon appearing the same size as the sun despite being 400 times smaller and 400 times farther away.
The lunar eclipse will be visible to billions of people across North and South America, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, assuming clear skies. Additionally, the eclipse may be observed by the nine astronauts residing at the International Space Station - comprising seven from NASA and three from China.
Written by urgent.news from Associated Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
Also reported by 2 other outlets
- Near-total lunar eclipse is coming up with the Americas in prime position winnipegfreepress.com
- Near-total lunar eclipse is coming up with the Americas in prime position toronto.citynews.ca
