Dark side of the moon

Starting 3am on March 4, the total lunar eclipse will last for four hours

The lunar eclipse on March 4 will truly be a romantic affair when a gigantic red moon will adorn the skies for about four hours starting 3am. People with access to balconies and gazebos should rush out and stake out their getaways facing the eastern horizon to bask in its glory.

Usually, rising moons are often reddened by the presence of chemicals in the air or dust clouds. But the moon on Sunday will be an extraordinary burgundy only seen during a lunar eclipse. While eclipses are a regular phenomenon, witnessed typically once or twice a year, astronomers claim that Sunday’s lunar eclipse is of Saros Series 123, which occurs at the moon’s descending node. (See box on Saros)

Lunar eclipses of Saros Series 123 all occur at the Moon’s descending node and the Moon moves northward with each eclipse. The series began with a partial eclipse south of the Ecliptic on August 16, 1087. The series will end with a partial eclipse north of the Ecliptic on October 19, 2385. The total duration of Saros Series 123 is 1,298.17 years.

“The lunar eclipse on March 4 will take place over a duration of 3 hours and 42 minutes,” says Bharat Adur, a member of the Badlapur-based Akash Ganga Centre for Astronomy (AGCA). “It will be visible in Mumbai from 3am when the partial eclipse starts, heading towards totality at 4.13am to 5.28am and then entering the partial eclipse which ends at 6.41am.” 

Adur adds that there will be two eclipses this month — March 4 will witness a total  eclipse and March 19 will witness a partial solar eclipse.

Besides scientific curiosity, eclipses are also associated with many myths. They have a strong astrological and mythical history. While some people fast until the eclipse is over, others regard them as omens. There are also some who refrain from storing

water, believing the water would turn into poison. Pregnant women shy from stepping out of their homes, preferring the view from the television. So, is there really a link between these heavenly phenomena and our fate?

“This is so absurd,” says Piyush Pandey, director of Nehru Planetarium. “How does some act in the universe affect humans? It is a natural phenomenon during which either the Earth comes in between sun and moon or the moon comes between the sun and Earth.”

Before the advent of astronomy, Pandey says the sight of an otherwise ordinary moon becoming red could only be explained by a miracle. “But with advanced strides in science and technology, it is truly absurd that people still believe in these myths.”