Jordanian astronomer Imad Mujahid, a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and member of the Arab Union for Space and Astronomy Sciences, stated that the skies over the Kingdom will witness a total lunar eclipse on the evening of Sunday, September 7.
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According to astronomical calculations, Mujahid confirmed in a statement today, Sunday, that the eclipse will begin at exactly 7:27 PM on Sunday, September 7, when the eastern edge of the moon starts entering the Earth’s shadow. The shadow will appear as a slowly creeping darkness across the moon’s surface. The eclipse will become total—meaning the moon’s entire disk will be inside the Earth’s shadow—at 8:31 PM. The moon will remain in total eclipse until 9:53 PM, when it will begin exiting the Earth’s shadow and the northeastern edge of the moon will be illuminated again by sunlight. The eclipse will end completely at 10:56 PM when the moon fully leaves the Earth’s shadow and is again fully illuminated by the sun.
He explained that lunar eclipses are beautiful natural astronomical phenomena with no impact on Earth or humans. They occur when the moon is full and close to the Earth’s shadow cone behind the planet. The moon does not pass through the Earth’s shadow every full moon due to the 5 degrees and 8 minutes tilt of its orbit relative to the ecliptic plane, so it often passes above or below the Earth’s shadow, avoiding an eclipse. However, sometimes the moon passes through the Earth’s shadow, becoming “captured” and causing a lunar eclipse.
Mujahid clarified that during a total lunar eclipse, the moon does not completely disappear but rather takes on a coppery-red color. This reddish hue results from sunlight scattered in the Earth’s atmosphere, which absorbs all wavelengths of sunlight except the longer red wavelengths. These red rays bend around the Earth’s edges and illuminate the moon, giving it the characteristic reddish tint during the eclipse. Without this atmospheric effect, the moon would vanish entirely during totality.
The intensity of the coppery-red color depends on the condition of Earth’s atmosphere. If water vapor and carbon dioxide levels are high, they block much of the red light from passing through, making the moon appear dark and almost black during totality. Conversely, if pollution levels are low, more red light reaches the moon, making it appear bright copper-red. This phenomenon allows scientists to study the quality and pollution levels of the Earth’s atmosphere.
