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Join on Telegram Rabat – Astronomy enthusiasts have enjoyed a total lunar eclipse – blood moon – from Sunday night, May 15 until Monday morning, May 16 across most of the world, including Morocco which observed every stage of it.
It is referred to as the “blood moon” because red, orange, and yellow light passes through the earth’s atmosphere and reaches the moon, creating a reddish tint on it.
The eclipse began in Morocco on Monday at 2:32 am, but the deepest part of the eclipse started at 5:11 am. The total lunar eclipse in the North African country lasted for four hours and two minutes, reaching its end at 6:24 am.
The phenomenon occurs when a full moon is on the opposite side of the sun in relation to the earth. The sun, earth, and moon align causing the moon to fall within the darkest part of Earth’s shadow – the umbra. When the moon is within the umbra, the earth’s atmosphere bends some sunlight towards the moon.
“The more dust or clouds in Earth’s atmosphere during the eclipse, the redder the Moon will appear. It’s as if all the world’s sunrises and sunsets are projected onto the Moon,” said NASA.
This year’s only full “blood moon” happened during a supermoon, when the moon appears larger and brighter in the sky due to its closeness to the earth.
Mohammed Shawkat Odeh, Director of the International Astronomy Centre (IAC), said that “as for Arab countries, the beginning of the lunar eclipse can be seen from East African countries, such as Egypt and Sudan, while countries in West Africa, specifically in Algeria and Morocco, will be able to observe every stage of it.”
Astrology lovers across the globe have enjoyed and captured the lunar phenomenon in images.
The next blood moon, on Monday, November 7, 2022, into Tuesday, November 8, 2022, will peak above the Pacific Ocean, favoring sky-gazers in the United States, Australia, and Eastern Asia.
According to NASA, observing the lunar eclipse does not require any special equipment, but a telescope or binoculars, as well as a dark environment away from bright lights, would enhance the view.
