April 1986 lunar eclipse
| Total eclipse | |||||||||||||||||
The Moon's hourly motion shown right to left | |||||||||||||||||
| Date | April 24, 1986 | ||||||||||||||||
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| Gamma | −0.3683 | ||||||||||||||||
| Magnitude | 1.2022 | ||||||||||||||||
| Saros cycle | 131 (32 of 72) | ||||||||||||||||
| Totality | 63 minutes, 35 seconds | ||||||||||||||||
| Partiality | 198 minutes, 45 seconds | ||||||||||||||||
| Penumbral | 312 minutes, 37 seconds | ||||||||||||||||
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A total lunar eclipse occurred at the Moon’s descending node of orbit on Thursday, April 24, 1986, with an umbral magnitude of 1.2022. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow, causing the Moon to be darkened. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon's near side entirely passes into the Earth's umbral shadow. Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth. A total lunar eclipse can last up to nearly two hours, while a total solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes at any given place, because the Moon's shadow is smaller. Occurring about 1.25 days before perigee (on April 25, 1986, at 18:40 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was larger.
This lunar eclipse was the third of a tetrad, with four total lunar eclipses in series, the others being on May 4, 1985; October 28, 1985; and October 17, 1986.