September 2015 lunar eclipse

September 2015 lunar eclipse

Total eclipse
Totality as viewed from Murrieta, California, 2:52 UTC
Date	September 28, 2015
Gamma	−0.3296
Magnitude	1.2774
Saros cycle	137 (28 of 81)
Totality	71 minutes, 55 seconds
Partiality	199 minutes, 52 seconds
Penumbral	310 minutes, 41 seconds
Contacts (UTC) P1 0:11:47 U1 1:07:11 U2 2:11:10 Greatest 2:47:08 U3 3:23:05 U4 4:27:03 P4 5:22:27
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A total lunar eclipse occurred at the Moon’s descending node of orbit on Monday, September 28, 2015,^[1] with an umbral magnitude of 1.2774. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow, causing the Moon to be darkened. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon's near side entirely passes into the Earth's umbral shadow. Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth. A total lunar eclipse can last up to nearly two hours, while a total solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes at any given place, because the Moon's shadow is smaller. Occurring only about 5 hours after perigee (on September 27, 2015, at 21:45 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was larger.^[2]

This lunar eclipse is the third of a tetrad, with four total lunar eclipses in series, the others being on April 15, 2014; October 8, 2014; and April 4, 2015.

The Moon appeared larger than normal, because the Moon was just 1 hour past its closest approach to Earth in 2015 at mid-eclipse, sometimes called a supermoon. The Moon's apparent diameter was larger than 34' viewed straight overhead, just off the coast of northeast Brazil.^[3][4]

The total lunar eclipse was darker than expected, possibly due to ash left behind from eruptions of the Calbuco volcano in April 2015.^[5]