Don’t miss the blood moon on Monday
Middelburg residents are encouraged to turn their eyes to the sky next week Monday, where a lunar eclipse will prevent itself early morning.
Local astronomer, Ernst Marais, told www.mobserver.co.za that the eclipse can be partially seen before sunrise on May 16 on the western horizons.
The full eclipse will unfortunately be missed due to the moon setting during the eclipse.
Ernst explained that a lunar eclipse is called a blood moon, due to the red glow that is formed by the earth shadowing the sun’s light.
According to a time table of the eclipse, the best viewing times are between 04:30 and 05:30 on Monday morning.
“A lunar eclipse lasts longer than a solar eclipse so make sure you have enough coffee for the occasion.”
Ernst also added that the eclipse presents a great opportunity for photographers. He added that a zoom lens of 600mm to 1000mm can be used on a tripod.
“The darkness causes a lot of noise, so a lower ISO with longer exposure is suggested. Perhaps a two to three second photo with an ISO setting of 100 will give best results.”
