A pair of unique events could occur in the skies over the Chicago area this week, but will residents be able to see them?
Thursday night will see a full moon rise over the Chicago area, and with it will come a partial lunar eclipse, with nearly 96% of the moon’s surface covered by the Earth’s shadow, according to NASA.
In addition to that eclipse, the Northern Lights could potentially be visible, as a geomagnetic storm watch has been issued by the Space Weather Prediction Center this week, thanks to a coronal mass ejection from the sun.
The question then becomes this: will one, or both, of those phenomena be visible for the Chicago area? Here’s what we know.
When are the two events supposed to take place?
According to NASA, Thursday’s partial lunar eclipse will get underway at approximately 8:30 p.m. Central time, and will reach its peak just after 11 p.m.
Unlike in a solar eclipse, when the moon passes between the sun and the Earth, a lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth’s shadow passes between the moon and the sun.
Because colors with longer wavelengths, including red and orange, scatter less through Earth’s atmosphere than colors with short wavelengths like blue and violet, the moon’s surface can take on a reddish hue during a lunar eclipse.
According to NASA, the eclipse will cover more than 95% of the moon’s surface.
As for the Northern Lights, a geomagnetic storm watch has been issued from Thursday to Saturday, according to the Space Weather Prediction Center.
A “minor” storm watch will be in effect for Thursday, while a “moderate” storm watch will be in place for Friday and Saturday nights.
Will Chicago-area residents be able to see the partial lunar eclipse?
While the NBC 5 Storm Team is warning of a few pop-up showers and thunderstorms on Thursday afternoon, the expectation is that cloud cover will likely dissipate enough prior to sunset that Chicago-area residents should be able to see at least some of the eclipse.
It is worth noting that the moon’s surface won’t be super bright red since it’s only a partial eclipse, but Earth’s shadow should cover its surface enough to allow for at least a bit of a show.
What about the Northern Lights?
Cloud cover isn’t expected to be a significant issue on either Thursday or Friday night, but multiple factors could conspire to drown out the Northern Lights over the Chicago area.
For starters, the solar storm that’s causing the phenomenon may not be strong enough during the overnight hours to make the auroras visible over the Chicago area, according to the SWPC and the NBC 5 Storm Team.
Further, even if the auroras are strong enough to generate a Northern Lights display, the bright light of the moon may drown out most or all of the colors in the skies over the region.
Be sure to stay tuned to the NBC 5 Storm Team for all the latest information on both the lunar eclipse and the Northern Lights, as well as the region’s next chance of showers and thunderstorms looming this weekend.
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