Europe witnessed a striking celestial event in the pre-dawn hours of Wednesday, featuring a full Moon that coincides with a partial lunar eclipse, a supermoon, and a harvest moon.
A supermoon happens when the Moon reaches its closest point to Earth in its orbit, causing it to appear larger and brighter than usual.
The harvest moon is the closest full moon to the northern hemisphere’s autumn equinox which took place on September 23.
A lunar eclipse can only occur during a full Moon when Earth positions itself between the Sun and the Moon, casting its shadow onto the Moon’s surface.
The partial lunar eclipse means that only a segment of the Moon passes through Earth’s shadow, which grows and then diminishes without fully obscuring the Moon, as explained by NASA.
The eclipse was observed in parts of North America, South America, Europe, and Africa, depending on local weather conditions.
In Europe, the partial lunar eclipse began at 2:41 AM CET on Wednesday, as the Moon started entering Earth’s outer shadow. The eclipse peaked at 4:44 AM CET, with approximately 8 percent of the Moon covered by the darkest part of Earth’s shadow, known as the umbra.
