Watch out for the longest total lunar eclipse and blood moon of the century

The world will witness a rare celestial event on Friday – the longest lunar eclipse of the century that will last one hour and 45 minutes. According to CNN, the moon will be in perfect alignment with the sun and Earth, with the moon in the middle of the Earth and the sun. Coupled with this, star-gazers across the world will also get a chance to witness a deep red Blood Moon, a situation that occurs when the moon is perfectly eclipsed and appears reddish due to the sunlight. Stargazers are having it very good this month with a line-up of a triple celestial delight: a partial solar eclipse on July 13; now a a lunar eclipse on the night of July 27; and Mars coming the closest it has to earth in 15 years on July 31. “India is at the centre stage of the lunar eclipse. It is visible all over India in its entirety,” Ajay Talwar, at the Amateur Astronomers Association Delhi, said. The cloudy monsoon skies could play spoilsport but since this eclipse is longer than most, there is a good chance of catching a glimpse. “The Moon is not always in perfect alignment with the Sun and the Earth, so that is why we do not get a lunar eclipse every lunar cycle. You will see the sunrise and sunset of the Earth lighting up the surface of the Moon -- over 350,000 km away. If you were on the Moon, you would see a total solar eclipse as the Earth would be blocking the Sun,” CNN quoted Brad Tucker, an astronomer with the Australian National University's Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics, as saying. This rare celestial event will be visible across Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia and South America. In India, it can be seen after 11:54 pm IST on July 27.