How to Watch the March 3 Total Lunar Eclipse in Jakarta: Times and Tips

8 hours ago 4

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Total Lunar Eclipse will occur on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, and will be visible from across the Indonesian territory. This upcoming event is particularly special as it is the only one occurring this year and will not take place again until December 31, 2028.

Avivah Yamani, an astronomy communicator from the Langit Selatan Community, explained that the moon's face will turn a reddish copper color. This color shift results from the scattering of visible sunlight waves, ranging from green to purple, as they pass through Earth's atmosphere.

Only red light can pass through the atmosphere and be reflected back to illuminate the moon, even though some of that red light is diffused or bent as well. "Because there is still light that can reach the moon, the Earth's natural satellite can still be observed," said Avivah on Sunday, March 1, 2026.

The Langit Selatan community plans to hold a joint observation of the total lunar eclipse this coming Tuesday. Thus far, they are still searching for an open location facing east. "Because the eclipse reaches its peak when the new moon rises, its position is still low in the east," explained Avivah.

It was explained that the Total Lunar Eclipse on March 3 will have been underway since the afternoon, with the first contact or the penumbral eclipse beginning at 15:44 Jakarta time. Consequently, the earliest observations can be made in the eastern part of Indonesia. Moreover, in this region, the moonrise occurs while the satellite is already in the middle of the penumbral eclipse.

The second contact, or the start of the partial eclipse, begins at 16:50 Jakarta time. It is during this phase that the moon rises in the central part of Indonesia, allowing observations to commence. The Total Lunar Eclipse, or third contact, begins at 18:04 Jakarta time, a phase where observers in the western part of Indonesia can finally join. The peak of the Total Lunar Eclipse occurs at 18:33 Jakarta time.

According to the community's website, the total duration of the Total Lunar Eclipse lasts for 58 minutes and 19 seconds, meaning it will only end at 19:02 Jakarta time. Meanwhile, the partial eclipse occurs as the moon leaves the umbra, or the Earth's core shadow. The partial eclipse ends at 20:17 Jakarta time as the moon enters the diffuse shadow, or penumbra. "The entire eclipse process ends at 21:22 Jakarta time when the moon leaves the Earth's penumbra," said Avivah.

This year, according to Avivah, there will be further lunar eclipses, but they will only be partial, though they can also be observed throughout the Indonesian territory.

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