Red Moon Rising

With dark corners away from the bright lights and flashing neon hard to find in Beijing, it could be worth heading out to the western hills to catch a better view of tonight’s total lunar eclipse ... or rather, the second half of a total lunar eclipse. Given the fact that the eclipse begins at 4.51pm Beijing time and that the sun won’t set in the capital until 6.53pm, if you're viewing the eclipse from Beijing, you're going to miss out on the first half of the show.

Astronomers predict that the moon will begin to pass through the shadow of the earth at 4.51pm Beijing time and by 5.52pm the whole surface of the moon will be covered by the earth’s shadow. At 6.37pm, just as the sun is beginning to set below Beijing’s horizon, the moon will be immersed in the deepest point of the earth’s shadow. After the sun has finally set at 6.53pm, you should be able to make out a copper-tinted moon in the south east section of the sky, and if you poke your head out the window at 7.23pm you’ll see the moon slowly begin to emerge from the shadow of the earth. By 8.24pm the whole show will be over.

No matter how much I want to pretend I know what the words umbra and penumbra really mean, I’m going to avoid all the technical terms and just insert a little link to answers.com for all of you who want to understand the reason why the moon is likely to turn a "coppery red" color.

Astronomers have warned China’s stargazers that if they miss out on this chance to witness a lunar eclipse, they’ll have to wait another 4 years for the next eclipse visible from China.

Unlike other cities around the world, Beijing’s Planetarium is not planning any eclipse related activities this evening.

Links and Sources:
Answers.com: Lunar Eclipse
MSN: 明日全国可见“红月亮” 一旦错过要再等4年(图)
Beijing Planetarium: 8月28日将出现月全食天象
Wikipedia: Lunar Eclipse (image)