August 1951 lunar eclipse
| Penumbral eclipse | |||||||||
The Moon's hourly motion shown right to left | |||||||||
| Date | August 17, 1951 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gamma | −1.4828 | ||||||||
| Magnitude | −0.8455 | ||||||||
| Saros cycle | 108 (71 of 72) | ||||||||
| Penumbral | 93 minutes, 36 seconds | ||||||||
| |||||||||
A penumbral lunar eclipse occurred at the Moon’s ascending node of orbit on Friday, August 17, 1951, with an umbral magnitude of −0.8455. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow, causing the Moon to be darkened. A penumbral lunar eclipse occurs when part or all of the Moon's near side passes into the Earth's penumbra. Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth. Occurring about 1.9 days after perigee (on August 15, 1951, at 5:05 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was larger.
This eclipse was the third of four penumbral lunar eclipses in 1951, with the others occurring on February 21, March 23, and September 15.