Lunch with the Moon
Lunar Eclipse Webcast 26 May 11:30 CEST start
Watch the replay of ESA’s real-time coverage of the total lunar eclipse from Wednesday, 26 May, including fascinating insights into Earth’s enigmatic satellite, the Moon.
Lunar eclipses occur when the Moon is engulfed by Earth’s shadow and the only sunlight that reaches its surface passes through our planet’s atmosphere, giving it a beautiful red-orange tint.
It will be the only total lunar eclipse of this year, and that same evening the Moon will be just 357 311 km away, often called a ‘SuperMoon’.
Forward to the Moon
- Despite the first human visit more than 50 years ago, the Moon remains largely unexplored yet promises to help us understand the formation of our planet, how crucial chemicals like water, necessary for life, came to the Earth-Moon system, and how we could one day use resources on the Moon to enable human colonies.
- In the near future, ESA will go ‘forward to the Moon’ when the European Service Module powers NASA’s Orion mission into lunar orbit, and in the next decade, ESA will play a key role in the development of the Gateway, an orbiting science station that will support future human landings.
The live programme runs over lunchtime in Europe and will provide commentary on this fantastic eclipse, with special guest astronomers, scientists, engineers and experts from Europe and Australia.
Programme segments will explain the basic science behind a lunar eclipse and highlight ESA’s ambitious plans for the next decade of space exploration, including the Orion Service Module, the deep-space Gateway, high-speed communication, a network of data-relay orbiters and the cutting-edge technology needed to support sustainable exploration on and beneath the lunar surface.
The programme will include a live video feed of the Moon provided courtesy of CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, from ESA’s deep-space ground station at New Norcia, Western Australia, as the eclipse is not visible from Europe.
Watch live Wednesday, 26 May, via ESA WebTV
To watch live on the day visit the ESA website or ESA Web TV.
09:30-11:30 UTC/GMT
11:30-13:30 CEST (W. Europe)
17:30-19:30 AWST (Perth, W. Australia)
19:30-21:30 AEST (Brisbane, Queensland)
‘Totality’ – when the Moon passes completely into Earth's shadow:
13:11-13:25 CEST | 19:11-19:25 AWST | 21:11-21:25 AEST
Programme scheduled guests
- Suzy Jackson, New Norcia Station Manager, CSIRO
- Ines Belgacem, Planetary Scientist, ESA
- Malcolm Davidson, ESA Earth & Mission Sciences Division, ESA
- Juergen Schlutz, ESA Moon Strategy Officer, ESA
- Elodie Viau, Director for Telecommunications and Integrated Applications, ESA
- Francesco Sauro, Director of CAVES and PANGAEA exploration programmes
- Gianfraco Visentin, Head of Automation and Robotic Section, ESA
- James Carpenter, Exploration Science Coordinator, ESA
- Karen Lee-Waddell, Director Australian SKA Regional Centre, CSIRO & ICRAR
Moderators: Thomas Ormston & Nadjejda Vicente
Social media
Follow the event with #LunarEclipse2021 and #ForwardToTheMoon.
More information
*Moon visibility may be affected by weather conditions.