Partial Lunar Eclipse on September 17-18, 2024: Time and Visibility Map
Don't miss your chance to see the last lunar eclipse of 2024! On the night of September 17-18, 2024, during the Full Harvest Moon, it will be visible on the night side of the Earth. To find out if you’ll see it from your location, use the Sky Tonight or Eclipse Guide astronomy apps. Read on to learn more about this exciting event!
Contents
- Time of the lunar eclipse in September 2024
- Visibility map of September 2024 lunar eclipse
- What will this lunar eclipse look like?
- When is the next lunar eclipse?
- September 2024 lunar eclipse: bottom line
Time of the lunar eclipse in September 2024
Here is the schedule of the upcoming lunar eclipse. Note that the timeline is in Greenwich Mean Time, so don't forget to convert it to your local time.
- Penumbral eclipse begins at 08:41 p.m. EDT on September 17 (00:41 GMT, September 18);
- Partial eclipse begins at 10:12 p.m. EDT on September 17 (02:12 GMT, September 18);
- Partial eclipse reaches a maximum at 10:44 p.m. EDT on September 17 (02:44 GMT, September 18);
- Partial eclipse ends at 11:15 p.m. EDT on September 17 (03:15 GMT, September 18);
- Penumbral eclipse ends at 12:47 a.m. EDT on September 18 (04:47 GMT).
The whole eclipse will last for 4 hours and 6 minutes; the partial eclipse (when the Moon is in the Earth’s dark shadow) will last for only 1 hour and 3 minutes.
Visibility map of September 2024 lunar eclipse
A lunar eclipse is visible from anywhere in the night part of the world. Some locations will see the entire eclipse, while others will see only part of it, as the Moon rises later or sets earlier there.
The entire eclipse will be visible over western parts of Africa and Europe, south and eastern North America, all of South America, and parts of Antarctica.
At least part of the eclipse will be visible from all of Europe, Africa, North America, South America, much of Asia, the Pacific, the Atlantic, the Indian Ocean, the Arctic, and Antarctica.
Lunar eclipse tonight: visibility map for USA
The partial lunar eclipse on September 18, 2024, will be fully visible across nearly half of the USA, including cities like New York, Washington DC, Miami, Dallas, Detroit, Chicago, and Kansas City. Check if the eclipse is visible from your location with the Sky Tonight free app!
Can I see the eclipse in my location?
To easily find out if the eclipse is visible from your exact location, use the free astronomy app Sky Tonight.
Type "lunar eclipse" in the search field and tap the matching result — you’ll see the visibility times for your location below the picture. If the event isn’t visible from where you live, you'll see a note below the "Global Visibility" times.
To see where the eclipsed Moon will be on the sky map, tap the target button. For a real-time view, tap the compass button and follow the white arrow until you spot the Moon on your screen. Note its position and plan your viewing night in advance!
What will this lunar eclipse look like?
During the September 2024 lunar eclipse, a small part of the Moon (3.5%) will look slightly darkened, almost as if a tiny "bite" has been taken out of it. Most of the eclipse will appear as a penumbral eclipse, meaning you'll see the Moon's disk slightly darken as it passes through the Earth's penumbral shadow, with a small, darker "bite" taken from one edge of the Moon as it goes through the Earth's umbral shadow.
You can see this event with the naked eye, but be sure to watch closely — it will be a subtle change in the Moon's appearance!
The bright golden dot you're most likely to see near the Moon on eclipse night will be Saturn. The planet has recently reached opposition and is now at its brightest in the night sky.
What will the eclipse look like from my location?
To preview how the eclipse will look from your location, check out the interactive eclipse maps in the Eclipse Guide app. It's the best way to prepare and make sure you don't miss even a subtle event like the lunar eclipse on September 18.
The app also provides exact times for every eclipse phase in your timezone, the best viewing spots, and more. You can even set alarms and get notifications when the eclipse begins!
If you think you already know everything about eclipses and don't need another fancy app, challenge yourself with our quiz! And if you don't get a perfect score, download the Sky Tonight or Eclipse Guide apps to become even better at eclipse watching :)
Lunar eclipse magnitude
Most astronomical sources provide the magnitude for lunar eclipses. While it shows us the visibility of a certain eclipse, it’s different from what we call an apparent magnitude of objects.
Eclipse magnitude helps to determine how much of the Moon's diameter will be covered by the Earth's shadow. The Earth casts two shadows (umbra and penumbra), so there are two magnitudes — umbral and penumbral.
For the partial lunar eclipse on September 18, 2024, the umbral magnitude is 0.085, and the penumbral magnitude is 1.037. For reference, the maximum possible umbral magnitude is 1.0, and the maximum penumbral magnitude is 2.0. These numbers correspond to a total lunar eclipse.
When is the next lunar eclipse?
The next lunar eclipse will be the total eclipse on March 13-14, 2025. It’s also knownas as the Blood Moon because, during a total lunar eclipse, the Moon’s disk turns red, creating a beautiful and a bit spooky view in the sky.
At least a part of this event will be visible from Europe, much of Asia, Australia, Africa, all of North America, South America, the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, the Arctic, and Antarctica. Never miss a lunar or solar eclipse with our constantly updated infographic!
September 2024 lunar eclipse: bottom line
The last lunar eclipse of 2024 will happen on September 17-18, during the Full Harvest Moon. People in Europe, Africa, North America, South America, and much of Asia will get to see at least part of this eclipse. Although it will be subtle, with only 3.5% of the Moon covered by Earth’s darkest shadow, a lunar eclipse is never something to miss! Download the Sky Tonight or Eclipse Guide apps to be fully prepared for this celestial event.
