Nigeria and others to witness ‘blood moon’ total lunar eclipse today

Many countries across the world, including Nigeria, will on Sunday, September 7, witness a total lunar eclipse creating a striking red ‘blood moon’ for skywatchers.

According to NTA, the eclipse is expected to last approximately 83 minutes, which will start around 8 pm Nigerian time.

Scientists state that the eclipse will be observable across most of Africa, with some regions able to view the entire event.

Some of the countries to experience the eclipse include Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Benin, Togo, Niger, Chad

The westernmost areas, however, may miss parts of the early penumbral or partial phases due to the Moon rising closer to or during totality.

Scientists confirm that a lunar eclipse is safe to view with the unaided eye.

A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are aligned in space, with Earth in the middle, casting its shadow on the Moon.

They are supposedly canonical events that don’t happen often, but they have happened at least three times in Nigeria recently.

On March 29, 2006, a total solar eclipse was experienced in eight states in Nigeria, including Ibadan, Abuja, Minna, Lagos, Kaduna, Abeokuta, and Katsina. It was very brief; it lasted for not more than three minutes.

Also, on November 3, 2013, a partial eclipse was visible in some cities in Nigeria in the north, central, and southwest. Cities like Abuja, Ilorin, Kaduna, and Lagos experienced this partial eclipse.

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Another eclipse occurred on July 27, 2018, in Nigeria. According to the National Space Research and Development Agency, the lunar eclipse in Nigeria began at 6:44 p.m. as a partial eclipse and progressed to a total eclipse at 7:30 p.m. It was only fully visible in Lagos.