While “super blood wolf moon” is a mouthful, astronomers hope it’s enough to get Edmontonians outdoors Sunday night for the phenom.
“If people are looking up they'll see the full moon—the bright full moon—the wolf moon of January, slowly dip into the earth's shadow, and as it does that you see less and less of the moon being illuminated. And then the moon takes on this coppery reddish glow,” said Frank Florian, director of planetarium and space sciences at the TELUS World of Science Edmonton.
That explains why the event is called a “blood moon.” As for the other part of its nickname, Florian said, “When the moon is at the closest point to the earth, a point called perigee, they call that a super moon.”
And finally, the “wolf” part comes from Aboriginal legends, which name full moons during January as such.
Florian hopes people ditch the technology in favour of nature’s “best kind of show.” The super blood wolf moon is expected to grace the Edmonton skyline between 9:41 and 10:43 p.m.
Unlike a solar eclipse, the lunar eclipse is safe and easy to view without special equipment. It will also be visible within city boundaries, despite light pollution—so long as the sky is clear.
“It's always a magical kind of thing. Especially for little kids that have never seen anything like this. They'll be in awe.”
The Telus World of Science observatory is open free of charge until midnight on Sunday.
With files from Regan Hasegawa
