On July 27 at 10.44 pm, the partial shadow or Penumbra of the Earth begins touching the Moon’s face,

at 11.55 pm on July 27 Partial Lunar eclipse begins as Earth’s major shadow Umbra partly touches and moon will be getting slightly red

at midnight 12 am Total Eclipse begins and a completely red moon can be observed,

at 1 am on July 28, at 1:51 am it will be maximum eclipse as the Moon is closest to the centre of the shadow

At 02:45 am Total Eclipse ends.

At 03:45 am on Satuday, the Partial Moon Eclipse ends

And at 4.58 am on Saturday the Earth’s Penumbra shadow ends.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A rare celestial shadow play of total lunar eclipse which will be of the longest duration for the 21st century can be witnessed on Friday. Scientists urge all not to miss out this rare spectacle of Red Moon called the `Blood Moon’ and Red Mars dazzling in the night sky and are set to organise awareness sessions with night sky observation at Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram . While, a section of scientists have also indicated the possibility of high tides and sea erosion along Kerala coast.“The Moon will be visible in a `scarlet red hue’ for over one hour and 43 minutes which is 40 per cent longer than any other eclipse measured in recent times Lunar eclipse can be better seen through a naked eye. By observing it through telescope , the moon will appear enlarged and will be partly visible. We are making arrangements for night sky observation for visitors free of cost on the terrace of the Priyadarshini Planetarium here from 11.30 pm on July 27 to 3 am on July 28. We will also keep the telescopes ready, so that the visitors can have a glimpse of the total lunar eclipse and watch out for other planets too including Mars the Red planet,” Kerala State Science and Technology Museum (KSSTM) director Arul Jerald Prakash told TOI. It is expected to be the longest lunar eclipse witnessed in 100 years. The Moon will disappear into the Earth’s darkest shadow known as Umbra, he said.“The total lunar eclipse will be fully visible in Thiruvananthapuram. The partial eclipse will begin at 11.55 pm. The total eclipse will start at 1 am on July 28 and when the moon is closest to the centre of the shadow, the maximum eclipse will be at 1.51 am. At 2.45 am the total eclipse will end. The partial eclipse will end at around 3.45 am. The total duration including the entire shadow phase will be six hours and 14 minutes,” he said. The reddish hue of the Moon is because the earth has an atmosphere and when the sun’s light reaches the atmosphere, gases in the air actually scatter or bend the light. Its red light that scattered by just the right amount that it ends up being directed onto the surface of the Moon,” Arul J Prakash said.It is well known that a lunar eclipse occurs only during full moon when the Moon appears fully illuminated from the Earth. A total lunar eclipse occurs when Sun, Earth and Moon are perfectly lined up, so only a minimal amount of sun light would seep through the atmosphere and so the Moon will appear dark. When most of the blue light from the Sun is filtered out by Earth’s atmosphere making the sky appear blue, and the least scattered red light seeps through the atmosphere and reach the moon and makes the moon look red. “Further, when dust content in the atmosphere is higher or if the particulate matter is higher, then the Sun rays refracts the red part of the light spectrum and the moon will appear Blood red, so the phenomenon is called Blood Moon,” Breakthrough Science Society (BSS) member Francis Kulathunkal explains.The volcanic activity in some continents spews up fumes into the atmosphere and with aerosol particles in the atmosphere, it can also cause such a spectacle, he added. Observers in Kerala and parts of Asia can witness the lunar eclipse of the longest duration for three hours, 54 minutes and 33 seconds from the time of partial eclipse begins when moon turns slightly red, he said.Awareness sessions will be organised in schools, colleges and wherever possible in the state. An awareness class with telescopic observation will be held at the Physics department of Sacred Hearts College, Thevara from 10.45 pm on July 27 to 3 am on July 28, he said.If clouds and heavy rains do not play spoilsport, then the astro-enthusiasts can watch out for the total lunar eclipse and other planets through the telescopic observation arranged by KSSTM at Priyadarshini Planetariam here, said BSS member and scientist PP Rajeevan. “Lunar Eclipse is a mere celestial event and has no harmful effects on human beings. People can safely watch lunar eclipse with naked eye. Speciality of this lunar eclipse is that it is the longest lunar of the century. Sea level rise will be more or less the same as that happens on a full moon day,” he said.“Spring tides occur either during Full moon or New moon, when the Sun, the Moon, and the Earth are aligned and their collective gravitational pull on the Earth gets strengthened, which can lead to tidal surge along the coast. There is a possibility of high tides and sea erosion along Kerala coast due to the effect of total lunar eclipse,” Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) member secretary Sekhar Kuriakose told TOI.KSDMA and Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services has also warned of high waves in the range of 3.5 to 3.9 metres along Kerala coast and the possibility of wave surge along the coast in the low-lying areas, especially in southern districts of Kerala.Total lunar eclipse timings from July 27 to July 28 from Kerala-