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Prepare For The Longest Lunar Eclipse Of The Century

(CBS) -- A total lunar eclipse will rise over the night sky this summer, and it will be the longest eclipse of this century, according to NASA.

On July 27, a lunar eclipse will be fully visible for 1 hour and 43 minutes.

But you may have to travel to see it since the eclipse will only be visible in parts of South America, much of Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia.

 

NASA Diagram
A diagram by NASA maps the path of a lunar eclipse that will occur on July 27, 2018 -- it will be the longest lunar eclipse of the century NASA

 

A lunar eclipse occurs when the sun, Earth and moon line up perfectly, casting Earth's shadow on the moon. The eclipse will be partially visible for 3 hours and 55 minutes. This also makes it the longest time an eclipse will be partially visible between the years 2011 and 2020.

A lunar eclipse always happens within two weeks of a solar eclipse. This summer, two partial solar eclipses will take place on July 12 and August 11. These can be seen from Australia, and parts of Europe and Asia, respectively.

 

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