Here are some guidelines for observation of this event.
If you've been following our social media posts you would notice an off-season for our FTV events sometime in the period of June to August. That's because the rainy season makes it hard to organize and promote an FTV with all the cloud cover. Since the eclipse is taking place in July it would be best to monitor the weather forecast for your respective area at the time of the eclipse. This way you'll know what to expect - although a lot of people will "take a chance" since it's not very often that you see a TLE.
The eclipse will happen early in the morning. If you will be observing all the stages you might want to camp out since you'll be up from 1 AM until sunrise. Of course if you have a comfortable roofdeck or terrace with a good view then you can chill while observing.However, if you are only observing for a while it's best to plan when to set your alarms depending on what you want to see. The Earth's shadow will start to take a visible bite at the Moon from 2:24 onwards. The end phase of the eclipse (Moon exiting the Earth's shadow) will not be visible in the Philippines since the Moon will set below the horizon at 5:44.
In choosing your location make sure you have a clear view of the WSW area of the sky with minimal obstructions on the horizon as totality will take place with the Moon low in the West. The image shows you the altitude (degrees from the horizon with 0 at the horizon and 90 at the zenith - the point directly above you) and the azimuth (South is at 180 and West at 270) with respect to a local observer. As you can see the maximum eclipse will happen at an altitude of 17 degrees.If you have to move to a different location please make sure the location is safe.
Now that you've checked the weather, time, and location here are some observing tips. Unless if you are doing astrophotography or documenting the entire TLE you can choose to skip the penumbral phase to catch some extra Zzzzz's. The penumbral shadow of the Earth will cause a slight dimming to the Moon which is not easily noticed by people who don't regularly observe the Moon. Capturing it with detectors can reveal the slight changes like the Penumbral Eclipse image shown.
Everyone is of course excited to snap a pic of the TLE. However to avoid experiencing those so called "expectation vs reality" moments beware of misleading tutorials that give you this and that settings because there is no fixed setting. The truth is to form any image you need a certain amount of light. During an eclipse the Moon dims in brightness and this dimming can also be affected by how clear the sky is at the time of observation. As the light becomes fainter cameras need to adjust to capture certain detail. The specifications of the camera (and of accessories such as lenses, telescope attachments, etc.) will also affect the ability to gather light and form an image.
As the Moon grows dimmer you would want to adjust either the exposure or ISO sensitivity (some smart phones have exposure value EV settings they can adjust) so that it can get more light. It is preferable to have a balance to these two. Also, as the Moon turns red you might choose to switch settings to capture a thinning crescent bite of the Earth's shadow and the Moon's reddening.
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| Two minutes apart. Left at an exposure of 1 sec and right at 1/25 sec. Both images at ISO 800. |
If you'll be blessed with clear skies during the eclipse there are other things to see as well. For the duration of the eclipse you will find Mars on the left side of the Moon (bright reddish-orange point) and at the beginning of the penumbral phase Saturn will be at an altitude of roughly 30 degrees in the West. Those camping out can spend their time enjoying Saturn before the TLE takes place (also catch Jupiter and Venus before they set).
Thanks for reading and we hope these guidelines help you out. Here's to wishing for clear skies!
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