NT Reporter
Panaji
On Tuesday, skywatchers in Goa will have the opportunity to view a partial lunar eclipse after sunset.
The already partially eclipsed ‘Worm Moon’ will rise at 6.42 pm, and the partial phase will end at 6.47 pm. “This unusual timing makes the eclipse hardly visible for about five minutes in Goa, and observers will see only 3% to 5% of the eclipse,” said president of Association of Friends of Astronomy (AFA) Satish Nayak.
Combined with daylight conditions during its occurrence, visibility in Goa is expected to be almostnil, he added. The complete eclipse will fully end at 7.42 pm. Observers with a clear eastern horizon and minimal light pollution will be able to witness the moon gradually emerging from the earth’s umbral shadow at approximately 6.42pm.
This is in fact a total lunar eclipse, with a spectacular blood moon visible at totality. However, this phenomenon will be visible only in the central Pacific Ocean and parts of western North America, eastern Russia, China and the entire Japan. For India, the eclipse coincides with the full moon or Poornima of the last month of the Indian calendar, Phalguna, and is observed as Phalguna Poornima, Hutashini Poornima or Gaur Poornima, synonymous with the festival of colours and spring, Holi.
