LUNAR ECLIPSE VISIBLE HERE ON WEDNESDAY

The total eclipse of the moon Wednesday will offer local resident a view one of nature's spectacle at a convenient time.

Craig Joseph, assistant professor of physics at Southeast Missouri State University, said this lunar eclipse is a bit unusual because it takes place in the early evening.

"This is a fairly convenient eclipse," he said. "Usually they happen at 3 in the morning."

The eclipse actually begins before sunset with the moon slowly moving into the earth's shadow.

"The initial stages will be hard to see, but we will see entire second half as the moon begins to emerge," Joseph said.

Totality begins at 5:07 p.m. and ends at 6:22 p.m. That's the time the moon is totally covered by the earth's shadow.

After 6:22, the moon will gradually emerge from the earth's shadow and the eclipse will end at 7:29 p.m.

"It is expected that this will be pretty dark eclipse," Joseph said. "Usually when the moon is completely in the earth's shadow it glows red. But it might disappear completely because of recent volcanic activity, especially Mount Pinatubo."

The moon will be fairly low in the northeastern sky.

Area residents interested in viewing the eclipse may do so from a post on the Southeast campus. Binoculars and telescopes will be available in the north end of the parking lot west of Rhodes Hall of Science.

"As long as we have the telescopes out, we will be looking at some other things too," Joseph said. "Saturn and Venus also should be visible."

Joseph said scientists can use the lunar eclipse to get an accurate determination of the earth's orbit, but mostly it's just a spectacle of nature.

But, Joseph warned, a lunar eclipse is a slow-moving spectacle. "It's sort of like watching grass grow," he said. "If you want to watch the progress, look every 15 to 20 minutes."

Weather will play a role in viewing the eclipse, Joseph said. If it's cloudy Wednesday people probably won't see much. "So many people think telescopes can see through clouds," he said. "They can't.

The last total lunar eclipse visible here was in August 1989. The next total lunar eclipse visible in Cape Girardeau will be Nov. 28, 1993; totality will occur around midnight.