Hyderabad: This year’s annual lunar eclipse coincides with Holi celebrations in India. However, it will not be a double bonanza for skygazers in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh as they will miss the majority of tonight’s colourful celestial event, dubbed as ‘blood moon’.While a total lunar eclipse will be visible in and around the Pacific region and in India’s northeastern states, Hyderabad will see moonrise at 6:22pm, by which time the moon will already be moving out of Earth’s umbra (darkest part of the shadow), and penumbra (the less dark outer region of the shadow). With the partial phase ending at 6:47pm, Hyderabadis will have a narrow window of 25 minutes for viewing the blood moon.The maximum eclipse will occur at 5:03 pm IST, which means enthusiasts in Telangana and AP will miss the totality — the part of lunar eclipse where the moon is completely in Earth’s shadow — or the blood moon phase of the eclipse. The phenomenon is called blood moon as some light passing through Earth’s atmosphere still manages to reach the moon, making its surface appear reddish. “Hyderabadis will not even see a partial lunar eclipse. The eclipse will also end quickly after moonrise as the moon will be very low in the sky, less than 5° above the horizon. Depending on the weather and location, we will see what is called a ‘bitten moon’ with greyish and reddish tints,” said Mrunalini, scientific officer at Birla Science Centre, Hyderabad. “The eclipse will be at its greatest magnitude at 6:27 pm for Hyderabad.” Vizagites will have a slightly better view with moonrise set for 6:02 pm on Tuesday, 20 minutes earlier than Hyderabad. Vizag will see moonrise in blood red, and witness partial lunar eclipse. While Hyderabad is having cloudy skies, skygazers will still train their telescopes at the horizon in the hope to catch the fag end of the eclipse.
