Morehead Center to host skywatching session for last lunar eclipse of 2003

CHAPEL HILL -- The last total lunar eclipse of 2003 will occur Saturday (Nov. 8), and the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center will host an eclipse skywatching session at the Ebenezer Church Recreation Area at Jordan Lake.

The free session will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., weather permitting. The lunar eclipse on Oct. 27-28, 2004, will be the next total lunar eclipse to offer favorable viewing conditions from North America.

The Morehead Center, a component of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will provide telescopes for close-up views of the moon, Mars and other celestial objects. Eclipse simulations also are incorporated into current "Carolina Skies" Star Theater shows.

"Eclipses are among a handful of astronomical events that can be enjoyed without using specialized observing equipment," said the Richard McColman, educational coordinator for the Morehead Center. "The darkening of the moon during a lunar eclipse is a dramatic sight even to the naked eye – an event which both modern and ancient peoples have held in great awe."

The partial eclipse, perhaps the most noticeable portion of the event, will occur as the moon passes through the Earth’s dark inner shadow called the umbra. Darkness will appear on the moon’s left edge at 6:32 p.m. The moon is expected to take three hours and 33 minutes to fully pass through the umbra.

Whereas the total stage of an eclipse generally lasts close to an hour, totality of the Saturday event will span only 25 minutes. Totality lasts from 8:06 p.m. until 8:31 p.m., with the maximum darkening of the moon occurring at 8:18 p.m.

"The total stage of this eclipse will be relatively brief because the moon’s path will only skim the edge of the Earth’s shadow," said Dr. Bruce Carney, Baron professor of astronomy and chairman of the department of physics and astronomy at UNC.

The moon may exhibit a coppery red color during totality. Direct sunlight is blocked from the moon during a total lunar eclipse, but a small amount of sunlight passes though the edge of Earth’s atmosphere. It is bent and scattered back out into space, striking the moon and creating the coppery red color. The reddish color of the lunar surface increases with greater dust content in Earth’s atmosphere, and the moon also may show a bright rim along its southern edge during totality as it skirts the outer edge of the umbra.

For directions to the recreation area or for more information on the program, click on www.moreheadplanetarium.org.

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Morehead Center contact: Carrie Anne Spinelli, (919) 843-7952
News Services contact: Deb Saine, (919) 962-8415 or deborah_saine@unc.edu