Milan, May 15, 2022: In the night between 15 and 16 May all with their noses up to enjoy the show that will give us the so-called ‘Red Moon‘. And not only that: it will also be a “Superluna”. The satellite will be near the minimum distance from Earth (perigee), a condition that will make it appear a little larger than average, although it won’t be so easy to realize with a simple glance.
The good news for fans is that the phenomenon will also be visible in Italy, at least for the first part: the climax, in fact, is expected atalba, when the Moon sets, and will therefore not be observable. Enjoy thetotal eclipse it will therefore be possible, as long as you give up a few hours of sleep.
Starting at 03:32 Italian time, the Moon will begin to enter the penumbral cone created by the Earth that transits in front of the Sun. At about 04:20 the partial eclipse phase will begin. When the satellite is completely inside the shadow cone, the total phase will begin at 05:29 Italian time, which will reach its maximum at 06:11. As anticipated on May 16, the Moon will set at 05:51, about 20 minutes after the start of the total phase and 20 minutes before its peak, which will last until about 06:50, so it will be possible to follow just under half of the whole phenomenon. The partial eclipse phase will end at 7.50 am, while the entire eclipse phase will end at 8.50 am.
The Italian Union of Astrophiles (Uai) organizes an event in collaboration with the National Institute of Astrophysics (Inaf) starting from 9.00 pm on Sunday 15 May, live, starting at 9.00 pm on May 15 on the Facebook page and on the YouTube channel Uai. The phenomenon will also be broadcast live from Virtual Telescope Project, with images from Rome and the Americas.
We now come to the most curious aspect: why we call it Red Moon? During the totality, but also in the advanced partial phase, our satellite acquires the characteristic color that gives its name to the phenomenon: this is due to the fact that at that moment the earth’s atmosphere directs the red portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. The same red halo would be visible even if we looked at the eclipse from the Moon instead of from the Earth: in that case, however, it would be an eclipse of the Sun, covered by the passage of our planet.
2022 will also offer us a second eclipse, on November 8, but it will be completely invisible from Italy: for this reason, connoisseurs cannot miss the appointment in a few hours. The total eclipse will be perfectly visible to the naked eyeeven without the help of binoculars or a telescope.