Lunar eclipse visible on Black Saturday

MANILA, Philippines - Weather permitting, Filipinos will be able to witness a partial lunar eclipse on Black Saturday.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said yesterday the eclipse will begin at 4:51 p.m. and end at 11 p.m.

In Manila, the moon will rise at 6:02 p.m. on Saturday and set at 6:10 a.m. the next day.

A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth comes between the sun and moon, casting a shadow on the moon.

A partial lunar eclipse, on the other hand, occurs when the earth moves between the sun and moon but the three celestial bodies do not form a perfectly straight line in space.

When that happens, a small part of the moon’s surface is covered by the darkest, central part of the earth’s shadow, called the umbra. The rest of the moon is covered by the outer part of the earth’s shadow called the penumbra.

The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said only the speediest of skywatchers will have a chance to see the total lunar eclipse rising on Saturday.

NASA predicts that the total phase of the lunar eclipse will only last about five minutes, making it the shortest lunar eclipse of the century.

This lunar eclipse will be the third of four eclipses in a lunar eclipse tetrad. The first occurred in April 2014 and the second in September 2014. The final lunar eclipse in the tetrad will happen on Sept. 28, NASA said.

PAGASA said lunar eclipses are safe to watch, so observers need not use any kind of protective filters for the eyes.