Longest and darkest lunar eclipse of the century witnessed last night

Longest and darkest lunar eclipse of the century witnessed last night

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, Jun 16: An overcast sky prevented people from witnessing the total lunar eclipse that commenced at 11:52 p.m. and ended at 3:33 p.m. last night. Considered to be the longest and darkest eclipse of the century, the lunar eclipse did not attract much public attention because it occurred during the late hours of the night.

 

 

 

 

 

Although astronomers consider this eclipse as one of the wonders of the universe, orthodox Hindus believe that an eclipse means bad luck and sufferings for people born under certain sun signs. Many people, therefore, conducted rituals to please the gods and visited temples to pray for protection against evil. Priests at various temples conducted rituals to appease the presiding deities of their respective temples after the eclipse.

Those who witnessed the eclipse in all its glory reported that the moon turned crimson during the eclipse. N. Rathnasree, the director of the Nehru Planetarium, said that this was the longest and darkest total lunar eclipse because the moon was deeply sunk into the dark shadows of the earth. The eclipse lasted a total of 100 minutes. The previous lunar eclipse occurred in 2000 and the next eclipse will occur in 2141.

A lunar eclipse occurs when the earth comes between the moon and sun casting its shadow on the moon. This can happen only when the sun, earth, and moon are in a straight line, said C. B. Devgun of the Science Popularization Association of Communicators and Educators.