While Hong Kong’s night sky may be devoid of stars (thanks, light pollution!), the city’s moongazers are due to get a little treat next Monday in the form of a partial lunar eclipse.
The partial lunar eclipse, which is less dramatic than a total eclipse and more interesting than a penumbral eclipse (a.k.a., the middle child), will begin at 11:48pm on August 7 and end at 4:53am on August 8, according to the Hong Kong Observatory (HKO).
The maximum eclipse will occur at 2:21am, when 25 percent of the moon’s diameter will be in shadow.
The observatory has helpfully noted that, weather willing, the eclipse will be visible at “most places with an unobstructed view of the horizon to the south and southwest”. As people whose views mostly consist of other buildings, we’re not entirely sure what that means either, but the HKO website has a handy map of “astronomical observation hot spots”.
If you, like us, can’t be bothered to figure out where to view the darn eclipse, you can watch the observatory’s webcast on this page from the comfort of your own home. Hopefully, the HKO will use filming equipment that’s more up-to-date than the term “webcast”.
At the moment, Hong Kong’s set to see prime skygazing conditions on Monday night, with clear skies and high temperatures predicted in the observatory’s nine-day weather forecast.
Next week’s eclipse will be visible from Asia, Africa, Europe, and Australia, according to Space.com. Following that, the annual and consistently impressive Perseid meteor shower is due to streak through the sky at around 9:30pm on August 12, so we’ve got plenty to tide us over until the next big astronomical event — mooncake season.
