Space enthusiasts are in for a treat. There are three events lined up over the weekend, including the year's first lunar eclipse. While the eclipse will begin at 15:15 GMT (8.45pm IST) on Friday, people will also witness the Aquariids meteor shower and the May flower moon. The eclipse that is occurring today is penumbral, when the Moon passes through the fainter outer shadow of the Earth, and sunlight falling on our natural satellite appears to be partially cut off.
According to American space agency NASA, the Aquariid meteor shower is active throughout April and May, with hundreds of meteors expected to be visible every hour.
CNN said that the peak time to see the meteor will be just before dawn on Friday, Saturday and Sunday (in the areas where they will be visible). The peak is expected at 11am EST (8.30pm IST) on Saturday.
Then there will be the May 'Flower Moon', the first full moon of the month of flower. It is called the 'Flower Moon' because flowers spring forth across North America in abundance this month, as per Almanac.
The 'Flower Moon' will coincide with the penumbral lunar eclipse and will be visible between 11.13am and 3.31pm EST on Friday (8.43pm to midnight IST).
Experts said that all phases of the lunar eclipse on Friday - from beginning to end - will be visible from several parts of India. These cities of the world will see the penumbral eclipse: Johannesburg, Tashkent, Bangkok, Seoul, Cairo, Manila, Philippines, Jakarta, Singapore, Ankara, Dhaka, Yangon, Hanoi, Melbourne, Baghdad, Moscow, Taipei, Tokyo, Beijing and Athens.
Those who want to watch the Aquariids shower could see up to 20 meteors per hour. However, those in Canada and other northern countries will have a smaller window to see it whereas people in the southern hemisphere will get a slightly longer time frame to see the celestial bodies falling from the sky, according to American Meteor Society.
