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Penumbral lunar eclipse to coincide with July 4th fireworks

Penumbral lunar eclipse to coincide with July 4th fireworks
Posted at 6:08 PM, Jun 30, 2020
and last updated 2020-06-30 20:08:38-04

If you’re going to a firework show for Fourth of July, there will be more than one reason to look up to the sky.

A penumbral lunar eclipse will occur during the evening hours on Saturday, which will be visible throughout the continental United States.

A penumbral eclipse means that some, but not all, of the moon will be partially in Earth’s shadow. Despite the lunar eclipse occurring during a full moon, the moon will appear to be slightly darker during the peak of the eclipse. At its peak, more than one-third of the moon will be in parts of Earth’s shadow.

Saturday's eclipse differs from total and partial lunar eclipses as the Earth will not completely block the sun’s light from reaching the moon.

The next total lunar eclipse visible from America will not occur until 2022.