[upbeat music]
Preston Dyches: What's Up for May?
This month, a rocky planet roundup
and a super blood moon eclipse.
[comet whooshing]
Beginning mid-May, if you can find a clear view
toward the western horizon, you'll have an opportunity
to see all four of the rocky inner planets
of our solar system at the same time...
...with your own eyes.
Starting around May 14th, cast your gaze to the west
about half an hour after sunset local time
to see if you can spot Mercury, Venus, and Mars,
and well, Earth is kind of hard to miss.
To see near the horizon, you need an unobstructed view
free of nearby trees and buildings.
Some of the best places for this
are the shores of lakes or the beach, open plains
or high up on a mountain or tall building.
In addition to the planets, from around the 14th
through the 17th, the crescent moon joins the party
for a lovely planetary tableau.
Now Venus will be really low in the sky.
It'll be easier to observe on its own later in the summer
but for now, take advantage of this opportunity
to observe all of the inner planets in a single view.
[comet whooshing]
May 26th brings a total lunar eclipse.
Over several hours, the moon will pass through
Earth's shadow, causing it to darken
and usually become reddish in color.
The red color comes from sunlight
filtering through Earth's atmosphere.
A ring of light created by all the sunrises
and sunsets happening around our planet at that time.
Because of the reddish color, a lunar eclipse
is often called a "blood moon."
Just how red it will look is hard to predict,
but dust in the atmosphere can have an effect.
(And keep in mind there have been a couple
of prominent volcanic eruptions recently.)
Lunar eclipses take place when the moon is full
and this full moon happens when the moon
is also near the closest point to Earth in its orbit,
often called a "supermoon."
Unlike solar eclipses, which you should never look at,
it's safe to view lunar eclipses with your eyes,
and unlike solar eclipses, which tend to have
a narrower viewing path, lunar eclipses
are at least partly visible from anywhere
on the planet's night side.
Now eclipses happen at the same moment
no matter where you are on Earth,
but the time your clock reads during the eclipse
depends, of course, on your time zone.
The best viewing for this eclipse is in the Pacific Rim.
That's the western parts of the Americas,
Australia and New Zealand, and Eastern Asia.
For the US, the best viewing will be in Hawaii, Alaska,
and the western states.
For the eastern US, the eclipse begins for you
during dawn twilight.
You may be able to observe the first part of the eclipse
as the moon just starts to darken, but the moon
will be near or on the horizon as Earth's shadow
begins to cover it.
The farther west you are, the more of the eclipse
you'll be able to see before the moon sets that morning.
Those in the western half of the country
will be able to see almost the entire eclipse.
So if you're in the path of this eclipse,
check your local times for the best viewing near you,
and if you're in the US, be prepared to get up early
if you to see this rare celestial event:
a super blood moon eclipse.
[comet whooshing]
Here are the phases of the moon for May.
You can catch up on all of NASA's missions
to explore the solar system and beyond at nasa.gov.
I'm Preston Dyches from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
and that's What's Up for this month.