THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The total lunar eclipse will occur today. The eclipse is from 2.39 pm to 7.26 pm. Full eclipse from 3.46 pm to 04.29 pm. As it is daytime, the eclipse cannot be fully seen, but the final phase can be seen in India as the moon will also be visible at 6 pm during sunset. Scientists all over the world are eagerly awaiting the lunar eclipse.

According to NASA, this will be the last total lunar eclipse in the next three years. India will have the next partial total lunar eclipse on October 28, 2023 and the next total lunar eclipse on September 7, 2025. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon, Earth, and Sun align, with the Moon passing through the shadow cast by the Earth. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes through the darkest part of the Earth's shadow. During this time, instead of disappearing, the moon appears bright red. It is known as ‘Blood Moon’.

When the Sun, Earth, and Moon align so that the Moon passes into Earth's shadow, a lunar eclipse occurs. A partial lunar eclipse occurs when the earth comes in between the full moon and the sun.

Places where lunar eclipse is visible

Although the blood moon will not be visible everywhere in the country, it can be witnessed in the eastern regions at 5.12 pm during the final phase of the total lunar eclipse. It will be visible in Agartala (Tripura), Aizawl (Mizoram), Bhagalpur (Bihar), Bhubaneswar, Cuttack (Odisha), Kohima (Nagaland), Kolkata and Darjeeling (West Bengal).

Can be seen partially in Kerala

As the moonrise is at 6 pm today in Kerala, the total lunar eclipse will not be visible, but the partial lunar eclipse will be visible for a while. It can be seen at the dusk for 15 minutes from a place where the horizon is seen clearly. The eclipse will continue till 7.26 pm but will be difficult to identify.