Last night's bewildering lunar eclipse won't happen again until 2123


Published: 2018-07-28 10:07

Last Updated: 2018-07-28 11:00

Friday's gorgeous Blood Moon as photographed in Amman. (Photo by Ibrahim Rantissi)
Roya News Source

If you've missed the lunar eclipse last night, you've missed a once in a lifetime opportunity... literally.

The moon turned into a glorious deep shade of red during the longest lunar eclipse of this century.

Lasting an hour and 43 minutes, stargazers in Jordan enjoyed every minute of the eclipse, thanks to yesterday's clear skies.

When will a lunar eclipse this long happen again? In exactly 105 years; meaning your great great grandchildren will witness this rare event in 2123.

The moon was indeed a spectacle to marvel at on Friday night, but one couldn't miss planet Mars, which was shining brighter than usual, since it was the closest to Earth than it had ever been in the past 15 years.

Despite being fully aware of what a lunar eclipse entails, many of us still couldn't shake the feeling of mystery and bewilderment that accompanied us while watching this astronomical event unfold.

Imagine just how humans from thousands of years ago must have felt when suddenly their moon changed shape and colour, before disappearing then reappearing. They must have stared at it in both fear and amazement, not knowing at the time how our Milky Way functioned.

In fact, in the ancient world, eclipses were regarded as omens and predictors of things to come, such as the death of the king (in Babylon). You can read more about eclipses and omens here.