ROANOKE, Va. – While many fireworks displays have been canceled, there may be a few other things that catch your eye this holiday weekend! The full ‘Buck’ moon rises on the 4th, and it does so in conjunction with a few friends.
Jupiter and Saturn will shine near the moon upon nightfall. Their position relative to the moon will change from Saturday to Sunday to Monday nights. A reconstructed diagram from EarthSky shows what that may look like.
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Meanwhile, a penumbral lunar eclipse will happen between 11 p.m. Saturday and 2 a.m. Sunday, with the maximum eclipse occurring at around 12:30 a.m.
Don’t expect a red hue to the moon, though. Penumbral refers to the Earth’s outer shadow (penumbra) being cast over the moon. You may notice a faint gray appearance, but that’s about it.
The last thing is something you won’t see. This is called ‘aphelion,' or the farthest point away from the sun in Earth’s annual orbit.
This further proves that our seasons on Earth aren’t dictated by our distance from the sun, but rather the angle of the sun.