The story of the Lunar Eclipse and the Approach to Mars
July 2018 was said to be an exciting month for sky lovers. At first, we saw the longest lunar eclipse of the century. Then the Sun on one side of the Earth and Mars on the other came in a straight line, called Mars opposition. That is not the end. Two days later, in 2003, Mars moved closer to Earth. We have to wait many years for these things to happen separately. But this time, all the scenes were seen in one month.
July 27, 2018, let’s start with the lunar eclipse. This eclipse was 1 hour 43 minutes long. From the beginning to the end of the partial eclipse was about four hours. While this fascinating four-hour natural show was going on, the moon looked red, called Blood Moon in English.
There is more superstition about the solar eclipse than a lunar eclipse. People are afraid of it as there is a risk of eye damage if they look directly at the Sun. But lunar eclipses are different. Looking at the moon is a soft feeling. And during the lunar eclipse, when the shadow of the Earth covered the full moon, this softness increased many times. And instead of being completely dark, the moon was covered with a reddish tinge. It is because of the Earth’s atmosphere. When light travels along the edge of the Earth, it bends toward the moon. Parts of this light wavelength (blue, green) are scattered and lost. The reddish light of high frequency falls on our eyes. So, we see the moon in red beauty.
How long a lunar eclipse lasts depends on which part of the moon’s shadow will pass through. The moon is on a plane that is slightly tilted from the surface of the Sun and the Earth. When the moon is near the edge of the shadow, the lunar eclipse is short. Another factor is the distance of the moon from the Earth. The moon was at its farthest point during the lunar eclipse on July 27, 2018. And for this, the moon looked smaller. It took longer to pass, so the lunar eclipse lasted a little longer.
A full lunar eclipse can last a maximum of 1 hour 47 minutes. It can happen if the moon passes through the midpoint of the shadow. This July eclipse took just 4 minutes less than the maximum time. In 2000, it observed a lunar eclipse for 1 hour 46.8 minutes. That was the longest lunar eclipse of the last century.
When the full moon was shining in the shadow of the Earth, Mars was next to the moon. Mars was then located in the closest area to Earth. Due to its proximity, the brightness of Mars is at its highest level. Mars and Earth revolve around the Sun in separate orbits. The speed of rotation is also different. So, it takes about two years for the two planets to come close at once. When the Sun, Earth, and Mars come in the same straight line, it is called Mars Opposition. This time it happened on the night of July 27. Of course, there is no way to understand it with the naked eye because of the Sun on one side of Earth and Mars on the other side. We only saw Mars at that time. At that time, the distance between Mars and Earth was about 57.8 million kilometers. Three days later, on July 31, Mars moved to its closest position since 2003. Then its brightness also goes to the highest level. At that time, it reduced the distance to 57.6 million kilometers. And in 2003, the Red Planet was only 55.8 million kilometers away from Earth. The average distance from Earth to Mars is 225 million kilometers. After 60,000 years, the two planets were seen so close. It will not take a thousand years to come so close next time. It can be seen so close in August 2287.
The 2018 opposition is even more important, as the service opposition is taking place in a position in the orbit of Mars closest to the Sun. The brightness is increasing. And the thing we see in opposition is that Mars rises at sunset and sets at sunrise. It is because Mars is located on the opposite side of the Sun.
The brightness of Mars has started to increase from July. It is still growing as it moves in an orbit closer to the Sun. But there is no point in being confused by the words floating in the air. As Mars gets bigger, it will take shape closer to the moon. That is a complete lie. Even in the brightest condition, the size of Mars can be seen only 1 part of 75 percent of the moon!