A blood red lunar eclipse on Election Day is the making of a political headline. I prefer to avoid politics in my weather reporting, but we can’t escape the reality of the day. For some this may be a long day that can start with the total lunar eclipse and end with the late election results.

This sky show event will be visible for most of the United States. The guarantee here in the Mid Atlantic is that the weather will be nearly ideal (clear) for viewing. The only caveat will be some areas of patchy fog. Otherwise, we are all systems GO for a great sky show!  Here is what you may see and how to view it.

Note: This will be BEFORE sunrise on Tuesday, but not too early. If your body has not yet adjusted to Standard Time, waking up a little early might be easy.

November 8 2022

Name: Beaver Moon. This has two meanings… 

1. Native Americans used this added ‘night light’ to set beaver traps.
2. Beaver are very active building their winter dams.

Where To Look

The western sky, low and near the horizon.

Timing

11:09 PM Monday November 7 – Time when officially Full!

5:17 AM Tuesday November 8 – This is when totality begins. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND getting out between this time and 5:30 AM to catch this. However, it will be getting lower on the Western Horizon.   Some areas may get obstructed by trees, hills, or buildings.

5:59 AM Tuesday November 8 – Time of peak, but it will be pretty low in the sky then. 

It may make for optimal photos with landmarks in some popular urban areas… but many people will not be able to view it at this tine. 

VIDEO

Times are in UTC (Universal Time Code): Subtract 5 hours for Eastern Standard Time

NASA Visualization – Moon Face Color Change

Key Time Frames

3:02 a.m. Penumbral eclipse begins

The Moon enters the Earth’s penumbra, the outer part of the shadow. The Moon begins to dim, but the effect is quite subtle.

4:09 a.m. Partial eclipse begins

The Moon begins to enter Earth’s umbra and the partial eclipse begins. To the naked eye, as the Moon moves into the umbra, it looks like a bite is being taken out of the lunar disk. The part of the Moon inside the umbra will appear very dark.

5:17 a.m.  Totality Begins

The entire Moon is now in the Earth’s umbra. The Moon will turn a coppery-red. Try binoculars or a telescope for a better view. If you want to take a photo, use a camera on a tripod with exposures of at least several seconds.

5:59 AM Peak Totality 

This will be the deepest red the moon will be, but it will be pretty low in the sky at that point. 

6:42 a.m. Totality ends

As the Moon exits Earth’s umbra, the red color fades. It will look as if a bite is being taken out of the opposite side of the lunar disk as before.

This is right as the sun rises for our region in the Eastern sky. 

NASA Visualization – Earth Shadow and Color Change

Who gets to see this

The central and western US/Canada and Hawaii to Alaska will get to view totality with the moon higher in the sky.

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