Total Lunar Eclipse Thursday May 15 Is First In Years

The first eclipse of 2003 occurs the night of Thursday May 15 and will be visible across North America as well as in South America, Europe and Africa. The entire eclipse, over three hours long, will be visible from start to finish in the Eastern United States. Mid-eclipse occurs at 03:40 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) or 11:40 PM Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). Those in the Western U.S. will view moonrise of an already darkened moon. Observers will notice a significant reddish or “copper” color effect starting about an hour and a half before mid-eclipse as the moon enters the inner, darker part of Earth’s shadow called the umbra. Enjoy!

3 thoughts on “Total Lunar Eclipse Thursday May 15 Is First In Years”

  1. Yesterday on the radio my husband heard some disk jockeys warning people not to watch the eclipse without eye protection. Couldn’t tell whether they were joking, or if they just don’t get out much…

  2. if you say they (the DJs) are either joking or they don’t get out much, then wouldn’t that mean that you already know that you can see the lunar eclipse with your naked eye??

    and btw, you can see the lunar eclipse with your nake eye.

  3. Sorry that my subject line was confusing, yes, you’re right, there’s no doubt that it is safe to watch the eclipse tonight. I know that it is safe to see lunar eclipses with my naked eye because I have done it before without harm. Wait, no, that logic is no good (it didn’t work for NASA folks who figured the shuttle had flown safely before with debris hits on launch, after all).

    How about, I know that it is safe to watch the lunar eclipse because it is safe to look at the full moon? Well, actually that logic is no good either, because it is safe to look at the sun (when you look at the sun, your iris contracts protectively, and you will turn away in discomfort before any permanent damage is done). It’s only during an solar eclipse (or other special circumstances) that people damage their eyes – because when the sky darkens, the iris relaxes, but the tiny little bit of the sun that is still showing emits enough radiation to inflict damage without any annoying discomfort.

    So, I can’t really articulate why it is safe to watch the eclipse tonight, but I will be watching anyway! :-)

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