October 1948 lunar eclipse
| Penumbral eclipse | |||||||||
The Moon's hourly motion shown right to left | |||||||||
| Date | October 18, 1948 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gamma | −1.0245 | ||||||||
| Magnitude | −0.0571 | ||||||||
| Saros cycle | 116 (54 of 73) | ||||||||
| Penumbral | 279 minutes, 41 seconds | ||||||||
| |||||||||
A penumbral lunar eclipse occurred at the Moon’s ascending node of orbit on Monday, October 18, 1948, with an umbral magnitude of −0.0571. It was a relatively rare total penumbral lunar eclipse, with the Moon passing entirely within the penumbral shadow without entering the darker umbral shadow. 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 4.2 days after apogee (on October 13, 1948, at 22:15 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was smaller.