The lunar eclipse will bite into the glowing face of the July Full Moon, shrouding it from sight over the nightside of Earth. The eclipse will be a partial one, meaning only a portion of the Moon will vanish. However, NASA’s astronomers at the Goddard Space Flight Center expect more than 50 percent of the Moon to be eclipsed next week. The eclipsing will occur when the Moon dips into shadow the Earth casts into space.
When is the partial lunar eclipse?
The lunar eclipse will appear in the night skies exactly two weeks after a total eclipse of the Sun on July 2.
Lunar eclipses typically appear within a fortnight of a solar eclipse.
This means the partial eclipse will peak on the night of Tuesday, July 16.
This is a special date because it coincides with the Apollo 11 launch on July 16, 1969.
What happened on July 16, 1969, 50 years ago?
50 years ago on July 16, 1969, three astronauts blasted off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral on a trip to the Moon.
The astronauts were Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin.
The American astronauts took off into space at precisely 2.32pm BST (9.32am Eastern).
Their journey to the Moon and back lasted eight-days in total.
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NASA said: “The American flag heralded the launch of Apollo 11, the first Lunar landing mission, on July 16, 1969.
“The massive Saturn V rocket lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center with astronauts Neil A Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin at 9.32am EDT.
“Four days later, on July 20, Armstrong and Aldrin landed on the Moon’s surface while Collins orbited overhead in the Command Module.
“Armstrong and Aldrin gathered samples of lunar material and deployed scientific experiments that transmitted data about the lunar environment.”
The three astronauts returned to Earth on July 24, 1969.
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What time will the lunar eclipse peak next week?
According to NASA, the eclipse will peak at precisely 10.31pm BST (9.31pm UTC).
The eclipse will be visible over the UK but only after Moonrise.
This means the initial stages of eclipses will happen while the lunar orb is still below the horizon.
Africa, the Middle East and parts of Western India will be best suited to see the lunar eclipse.
