Since 1982 not a double phenomenon related to the moon as happens early morning 27 to September 28 occurred. A super moon ‘will bleed’ because of a total lunar eclipse.
Today at night and early Monday the inhabitants of much of the world, including the Americas, have the opportunity to enjoy a show unusual.
This is a total lunar eclipse (when the Moon is completely in shadow because the earth comes between it and the Sun) which also coincides with a superluna. This phenomenon occurs when the full or new moon is at its closest point to Earth.
The last time this strange positioning of the three celestial bodies took place was in 1982. And next not will occur until 2033.
But while for astronomy lovers this show -in which the moon turns a reddish color can be just beautiful or exciting for NASA experts it is a small headache.
Why? Because they fear that the lack of sunlight can leave without power to one of his most important spacecraft. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO, for its acronym in English), whose mission is to explore our natural satellite
“There are two things that happen during an eclipse: it starts getting cold and no sun to charge the batteries.”, explains Noah Petro, a scientist at the US space agency
The total eclipse will last more than an hour and “the ship will run out of direct sunlight for about three hours.”
Similar technologies prior showed difficulties during eclipses, but the LRO was designed specifically with this in mind.
As the probe recharge their batteries with solar energy during the eclipse NASA should take a number of precautions. “Preheat the ship and then turn off the instrument to keep it safe,” said the scientist.
Safely
As the moon will be at its closest point our planet, which is known as the perigee, will be larger than usual and brightest in the sky.
“We appear about 14% larger and 30% brighter,” explains Sam Lindsay of the Royal Astronomical Society in London. The phenomenon, also known as superluna, is related to the slightly elliptical orbit of the Moon: the satellite revolves around the Earth, but it does it in a circle forming a kind of oval, which constantly moves away and approaches our last planeta.La combination of a lunar eclipse and superluna dates back to 1982, according to NASA, and the next will not take place before 2033. “A whole generation has not ever seen,” says Noah Petro Orbiter project Lunar Reconnaissance (LRO) spacecraft. Eclipses have long been the subject of religious, mythological or symbolic interpretations. “Throughout history, many cultures considered the eclipses as signs of sadness and misfortune,” recalls Noah Petro.
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