Filipino skywatchers are ready for a spectacular astronomical event that is happening on Tuesday night, Nov. 8.
“Weather permitting, a total lunar eclipse will be visible from 5:19 p.m. to 9:58 p.m. above the eastern horizon,” said Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) weather specialist Mario Raymundo.
However, the totality of the eclipse, during which the moon enters the darkest part of the Earth’s shadow, will last for one hour, 25 minutes, and 42 seconds—from 6:16 p.m. to 7:42 p.m., he said.
The greatest eclipse or the peak stage of the eclipse will be at 6:59 p.m.
This astronomical phenomenon causes the moon to appear red, which is why it is also called the “blood moon.”
Raymundo said the PAGASA Astronomical Observatory will live stream this event via the PAGASA Official Facebook Page and PAGASA YouTube channel.
Moreover, he said that some places in northern Philippines can also observe a “rare” event called the lunar occultation of planet Uranus that will occur during the time of the total lunar eclipse.
“The moon will pass in front of Uranus, creating a lunar occultation visible from the northern parts of the Philippines. This event will last for 17 minutes and 51 seconds for most of the areas,” Raymundo said.
Areas that may likely observe the occultation are Bagabag, Nueva Vizcaya; Baguio City; Basco, Batanes; Cauayan, Isabela; Lingayen, Pangasinan; San Fernando, La Union; Tuguegarao City; and Vigan City.
‘Cloudy’ eclipse
According to PAGASA’s weather forecast on Tuesday morning, cloudy skies with scattered rain and thunderstorms may dominate most of Luzon.
“This is the chances of observing . Kinuha ko ito sa PAGASA website at sa Guam satellite, medyo makapal po talaga ang ulap (I took it from the PAGASA website and the Guam satellite, the clouds are really quite thick),” according to Raymundo, in his presentation at the PAGASA press conference.
He said that with the clouds blanketing Metro Manila and other parts of Luzon, there could be a slight chance of seeing the astronomical event.
“Nananalangin kami sana mga bandang alas singko ng hapon ay umulan so that mabawasan ang kaulapan at para makita po natin ang ating total lunar eclipse (We pray that around five o’clock in the afternoon it will rain so that the cloudiness will reduce, and so that we can see the total lunar eclipse),” Raymundo said.
“ kung mapapansin ninyo ang Visayas, Mindanao, at Palawan ay clear. So ang presentation ko na ito, in case ma-zero po tayo may pagkakataon po ang mga kababayan natin sa southern portion of the Philippines na ma-witness ang ating total lunar eclipse (However, if you notice the skies in Visayas, Mindanao, and Palawan are clear. So this is my presentation, in case we get a zero chance of viewing the event in Luzon, our countrymen in the southern portion of the Philippines have a chance to witness the total lunar eclipse),” he added.
The last time that the Philippines observed a total lunar eclipse was on May 26, 2021.
“In the eclipse in 2021, the totality was almost 18 minutes, unlike today, which is one hour and 25 minutes,” Raymundo said.
The next event after the Nov. 8, 2022 total lunar eclipse in the Philippines will be on Sept. 7 to 8, 2025 and March 3, 2026.