<p>The longest partial lunar eclipse in nearly 600 years, which will bathe the Moon in red, was visible for a big slice of humanity on Friday.</p>.<p>The celestial show will see the lunar disc almost completely cast in shadow as it moves behind the Earth, reddening 99 per cent of its face.</p>.<p>The spectacle was visible for all of North America and parts of South America from 0602 GMT Friday, and may later be seen in Polynesia, Australia and northeast Asia.</p>.<p>By 0750 GMT, sky-watchers with a cloud-free view in those regions saw the Moon half covered by the Earth's penumbra -- the outer shadow.</p>.<p>Space scientists said on Thursday that by 0845 GMT the Moon would appear red, with the most vivid colouring visible at peak eclipse 18 minutes later.</p>.<p>The dramatic red is caused by a phenomenon known as "Rayleigh scattering", where the shorter blue light waves from the Sun are dispersed by particles in the Earth's atmosphere.</p>.<p>Red light waves, which are longer, pass easily through these particles.</p>.<p>"The more dust or clouds in Earth's atmosphere during the eclipse, the redder the Moon will appear," a NASA website explained.</p>.<p>"It's as if all the world's sunrises and sunsets are projected onto the Moon."</p>.<p>From the moment the eclipse began -- when the Moon entered the Earth's shadow -- to when it ends will take more than three hours and 28 minutes.</p>.<p>That is the longest partial eclipse since 1440 -- around the time Johannes Gutenberg invented his printing press -- and won't be beaten until the far-off future of 2669.</p>.<p>But Moonwatchers won't have to wait that long for another show -- there will be a longer total lunar eclipse on November 8 next year, NASA said.</p>.<p>Even better news for anyone wanting to watch is that no special equipment is necessary, unlike for solar eclipses.</p>.<p>Binoculars, telescopes or the naked eye will give a decent view of the spectacle -- as long as there is good weather here on Earth.</p>.<p>After it passes into the umbra -- the full shadow -- the whole process will go into reverse as the Moon slithers out of the dark and carries on its endless journey around our planet.</p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>
<p>The longest partial lunar eclipse in nearly 600 years, which will bathe the Moon in red, was visible for a big slice of humanity on Friday.</p>.<p>The celestial show will see the lunar disc almost completely cast in shadow as it moves behind the Earth, reddening 99 per cent of its face.</p>.<p>The spectacle was visible for all of North America and parts of South America from 0602 GMT Friday, and may later be seen in Polynesia, Australia and northeast Asia.</p>.<p>By 0750 GMT, sky-watchers with a cloud-free view in those regions saw the Moon half covered by the Earth's penumbra -- the outer shadow.</p>.<p>Space scientists said on Thursday that by 0845 GMT the Moon would appear red, with the most vivid colouring visible at peak eclipse 18 minutes later.</p>.<p>The dramatic red is caused by a phenomenon known as "Rayleigh scattering", where the shorter blue light waves from the Sun are dispersed by particles in the Earth's atmosphere.</p>.<p>Red light waves, which are longer, pass easily through these particles.</p>.<p>"The more dust or clouds in Earth's atmosphere during the eclipse, the redder the Moon will appear," a NASA website explained.</p>.<p>"It's as if all the world's sunrises and sunsets are projected onto the Moon."</p>.<p>From the moment the eclipse began -- when the Moon entered the Earth's shadow -- to when it ends will take more than three hours and 28 minutes.</p>.<p>That is the longest partial eclipse since 1440 -- around the time Johannes Gutenberg invented his printing press -- and won't be beaten until the far-off future of 2669.</p>.<p>But Moonwatchers won't have to wait that long for another show -- there will be a longer total lunar eclipse on November 8 next year, NASA said.</p>.<p>Even better news for anyone wanting to watch is that no special equipment is necessary, unlike for solar eclipses.</p>.<p>Binoculars, telescopes or the naked eye will give a decent view of the spectacle -- as long as there is good weather here on Earth.</p>.<p>After it passes into the umbra -- the full shadow -- the whole process will go into reverse as the Moon slithers out of the dark and carries on its endless journey around our planet.</p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>