Lunar Delights for Sky Watchers: Indonesia

It’s nice being starry eyed but there is a great delight in store on Sunday with a lunar eclipse expected in the skies above Indonesia and it is the first one for the year. The eclipse will span four hours, peaking Sunday at 5:54 a.m.

There is, however, another eclipse due on August 28th, so don’t fret if you miss the one on Sunday!. Also, there are partial eclipses of the sun expected over Indonesia on the morning of March 19 and the afternoon of Sept. 11 this year.

For those who are not in the know, a lunar eclipse occurs when the moon is aligned with the earth and the sun, with the moon passing through the earth’s shadow.

As always in Indonesia, government departments are in disagreement and the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said on its website that the eclipse will commence at 4:30 a.m. Sunday, reach its peak at 6:58 a.m. and end at 8:11 a.m.

If you are in Sumatra over the weekend then you are in the box seat to witness this lunar delight with the island having the best vantage point.