Partial lunar eclipses occur went the Earth moves in between the Sun and a full Moon but they don’t quite line up perfectly. A small part of the Moon’s surface is covered by the inner (darkest) part of Earth’s shadow, the umbra, while the rest of the Moon is covered by the outer part of Earth’s shadow, the penumbra. In this case, the umbral eclipse will last for 3 hours and 28 minutes — the longest of the century — while the penumbral eclipse, when the Moon passes through both inner and outer parts of Earth shadow, will last for a whopping 6 hours and 1 minute.
This will be the longest partial lunar eclipse since February 18, 1440 — around the time Machu Picchu was being built — and Earth won’t see another of this duration until February 8, 2669, so you won’t exactly be able to tell your grandkids you saw it, but you’ll know.
Luckily, you don’t need any specialist equipment to look at a lunar eclipse. Unlike a solar eclipse, it’s totally safe to look at without protective eyewear or filters, should you want to use a telescope or binoculars.
As usual, Time and Date will be able to tell you the exact timings of the umbral and penumbral eclipses based on your location. If the sky is too cloudy or you don’t fancy sitting out in the cold, the Virtual Telescope Project will be live streaming it, as will Time and Date.
And if you miss all this completely, don’t worry, there will be a total lunar eclipse to look forward to in May 2022.
Source:iflscience.com/space