Get ready to have a truly terrestrial experience on Wednesday night.
A super blood blue moon will take place starting from 9.51pm on January 31, 2018, and Australia will have the best vantage points for viewing.
It is a lunar trifecta as there will be three phenomena happening all at once to create a true spectacle which will take longer than five hours from start to finish.
However, the show may be a little bit of a let down for Sydney residents.
Weatherzone has predicted cloud cover on Wednesday night across the Greater Sydney region.
This is how it will happen:
Blue moon: This is a reference for the second full moon in a month. This is because lunar months are a little shorter than solar ones leading to an extra moon during the year.
Super moon: This happens when the moon is its closest to the earth during its orbit. Because of this the moon will appear much bigger in the sky and about 30 per cent brighter.
Blood moon: The blood colour of the moon happens during a lunar eclipse as the sun, earth and moon align while the moon passes through the earth’s shadow. The red colour is caused by sunlight refracting around the earth.
Super Blood Blue Moon phases
For NSW
Wednesday, January 31, 2018:
9.51pm – The earth’s penumbral (shadow) starts touching the moon’s face
10.48pm – Partial eclipse begins with the moon starting to go red
11.51pm – Total eclipse starts – it is a full blood (red) moon
12.29pm – Maximum eclipse – The moon is closest to the centre of the shadow
1.07am – Total eclipse ends as the shadow begins to pass
2.11am – partial moon eclipse ends
3.08am – the earth’s shadow has passed.
(Information from https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/in/australia/sydney/)
How to take the best lunar photos
With any lunar event, people across the world will be taking pictures to portray a point in time, whether they have a full camera unit or just a smartphone.
Below are some links to articles on how to photograph the moon.
Below is a link to some tips if you want to use your smartphone.
