Total Lunar Eclipse NIGHT 27 AM 28 JULY 2018

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Total lunar eclipse of October 8, 2014 in Hanoi – Picture: Hoang Quoc Phuong – A

At dawn on July 28, 2018, Vietnamese and many parts of the world will be able to admire an amazing astronomical phenomenon: a total lunar eclipse. This is the second and last lunar eclipse this year (2018). The last lunar eclipse occurred on January 31, 2018. HAS made observations at the clock column of My Dinh stadium. The next lunar eclipse that Vietnam can follow, occurs on the night of July 16-17, 2019 (partial lunar eclipse), the next time we can observe the next total lunar eclipse, we will have to wait until May 26, 2021, but when the total phase occurs, the new moon begins to rise, which is not convenient for observation.

What is a lunar eclipse?

A lunar eclipse is a phenomenon that occurs when the Moon is blocked by the Earth and cannot be illuminated by the Sun. When the Moon passes completely into the shadow of the Earth, a total lunar eclipse is observed.

As the Moon sinks deeper into the Earth’s shadow, the Moon will gradually change color from silver to orange or red. The cause comes from the very atmosphere of the Earth. Earth’s atmosphere with different densities and temperatures with altitude is like a prism and contains many dust particles that scatter short wavelength light, allowing long wavelength light to pass easily (in this case, red-orange), red is the color that is deflected towards the center of Earth’s darkness. When the Moon enters the Dark Region, it’s actually not completely dark, but that area is lit up with red rays, resulting in a dark red Moon that the press often calls a “blood moon.” This phenomenon is physically similar to the fact that the Sun is red at sunset.

The image illustrates the phase and process of the lunar eclipse

II. The region can observe the lunar eclipse on the night of July 27 and the early morning of July 28, 2018.

This lunar eclipse, Vietnam is a very convenient place to observe because it is located in an area that can be clearly observed.

Viewing Guide
The lunar eclipse developments in Vietnam are as follows (according to VN UTC+7) on the morning of July 28:
– The moon enters the semi-dark zone: 00:14
However, in the semi-dark phase, it is difficult to see the Moon’s color change with the naked eye.
– Start of partial phase: 01:24
– Start of the complete brew: 02:30
– End of complete phase: 04:13
– End of partial phase: 05:19
– Moonset: 05:36

Choose a space for you and your friends that is as spacious and cool as possible, as far away from city lights as possible. It is an astronomical phenomenon that can be seen with the naked eye but is more interesting if you have a pair of binoculars or a telescope. The Moon is very large, so it is easy to locate when observing.

Telescope
Also, I would like to show you how to make a simple refracting telescope in a few notes from materials available for observing lunar eclipses.

The astronomical telescope was built by HAS.

https://deepsky2000.net/forum/showthread.php?3039-Huong-dan-che-tao-va-lap-rap-kinh-thien-van-khuc-xa-Phien-ban-Ursa-Major-60F900

photography guide

It is not enough to observe, you may want to record this interesting phenomenon so that you can share it with your friends and the world. If you already have a camera, it’s very simple, here are some small shares that can help you save the best photos.

– For phone cameras:

To capture images on your mobile device, you need to equip the included telephoto lenses that can be attached directly to the back, which will partially support the camera’s magnification capabilities. Or you can also shoot indirectly through binoculars or telescopes, the resulting images will be quite amazing. If you don’t have the supporting tools, you can still shoot with your bare hands. The settings are as follows: for live view, you have to put the phone on a firm support or on a tripod, it will prevent the image from shaking due to the hand and there is a camera that can shoot at very low speed without the image being blurred. You should not use your phone’s zoom mode as this will do nothing but reduce image detail – just take a picture as normal and zoom in later in post. Prefer the manual mode in this case. Since the lighting conditions in the full phase are very low, you should slow the shutter speed as low as possible and gradually increase the speed as the Moon begins to get brighter in the partial phase (shooting time may be seconds or more depending on camera model, so it is extremely important that you keep the camera still while shooting), set the Iso level between 200 and 400 to limit noise. Set the white balance to sunlight (between 5000 and 6000k), choose manual focus mode to better focus on a very distant object (like a building or distant lights), and if the camera has the capability, shoot in Raw format, it will be ideal for post-production.

– For travel cameras:

Travel cameras have an advantage over phones in terms of optical zoom capabilities (from 3x to 60x depending on the type). Set it to fully manual or semi-automatic mode. The ISO changes flexibly from 100 to 800 depending on the brightness in the phases of the Moon, place the camera on a stable surface or a tripod to be able to take pictures at low speeds, focus at infinity, self-timer after a few seconds to prevent hand shake. Changing the aperture of a travel camera doesn’t make much difference, so let the camera take care of that and shoot raw files if possible. There are several types of adapters that allow the camera to be attached to binoculars or spotting scopes, so if you want excellent image quality, buy these for use with a spotting scope.

+ First set your camera to manual mode (or any other mode that allows you to customize the settings).

+ Turn off the flash or it will ruin the moonlight!

+ Set focus mode to infinity. In travel cameras, this mode usually takes the form of a landscape mode (Scenery-Landscape) with an SCN or mountain icon.

+ Next you need to switch the metering mode to Spot. It helps to make the Moon image clear and not blurry like a light bulb ^^ Try to find this icon in your device!

Finally point the camera at the Moon and zoom in fully.

To prevent blurry photos due to hand shake, you should use a tripod. If you don’t have a tripod, you can set the camera to take multiple photos at once to choose the best one. Let’s practice capturing the Moon from now on so we can capture those rare moments in the universe!

– For mirrorless (DSLR) models:

It really is a perfect device for any subject and the Moon is no exception. There’s nothing better than having a 200-400mm telephoto lens, a sturdy tripod and a moon filter (if you have one). DSLRs are too smart, so shooting in Av aperture priority mode is recommended. Close the aperture to f8-f11 to ensure sharpness, the light will be ISO and the shutter speed will be supported. You need to turn off the noise reduction mode on the camera to get a true picture, and you may need to subtract a few Ev’s because the scene you are going to shoot will be very bright, use spot metering mode to get the best metering. Disable lens stabilization if you place the camera on a tripod. And of course, shoot Raw. Use a soft strap or take a photo after 2 seconds to avoid shaking, if you are more demanding, lock the mirror before shooting. For DSLRs there is an advantage that you cannot use the camera lens but attach it directly to the telescope, at which point the telescope will become a super telephoto lens with a focal length of 500-1500mm. For this you need an adapter made from a convertible M42 mount and another small part that is very simple to make in the parts workshop. Astrophotography will become more professional if you have a tripod with dynamic tracking function. Take one minute intervals for each photo so that when you’re done you have a short footage of the eclipse process.