February 1944 lunar eclipse
| Penumbral eclipse | |||||||||
The Moon's hourly motion shown right to left | |||||||||
| Date | February 9, 1944 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gamma | 1.2698 | ||||||||
| Magnitude | −0.5223 | ||||||||
| Saros cycle | 142 (14 of 74) | ||||||||
| Penumbral | 226 minutes, 39 seconds | ||||||||
| |||||||||
A penumbral lunar eclipse occurred at the Moon's ascending node of orbit on Wednesday, February 9, 1944, with an umbral magnitude of −0.5223. 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 1.1 days before apogee (on February 10, 1944, at 7:45 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was smaller.
This eclipse was the first of four penumbral lunar eclipses in 1944, with the others occurring on July 6, August 4, and December 29.