PAGASA: Partial lunar eclipse visible before dawn Friday

Filipino sky-watchers may be in for a treat before dawn Friday with a partial lunar eclipse that will last until the early morning. The PAGASA said the eclipse will be "safe to watch," and observers need not use protective filters. "A pair of binoculars will help magnify the view and will make the red coloration of the Moon brighter," PAGASA OIC Vicente Malano said. He said the umbral eclipse magnitude will be 1.47 percent and will also be visible primarily in Australia, most of Asia, Africa, Europe and Antarctica. In Manila, Malano said the moon will rise at 5:43 p.m. on April 25, and will set at 5:40 a.m. on April 26. "The eclipse will begin at 2:03 a.m. Philippine Standard Time (PST) and will end at 6:11 a.m. (PST)," he said. PAGASA said the penumbral eclipse (partial shading of a part of the moon) begins at 2:03 a.m., while the partial eclipse begins at 3:54 a.m. It added the partial eclipse ends 4:21 a.m. while the penumbral eclipse ends at 6:11 a.m. — LBG, GMA News