The world on Wednesday witnessed the longest lunar eclipse in 11 years, and the first in 2011. It became visible to the naked eye in Egypt at around 8:15 pm and lasted for 3 hours, 39 minutes and 12 seconds. The American University in Cairo celebrated the eclipse with a marionette show about the importance of the moon and the sun for children. “An eclipse lasts longer if the moon is at a close distance to the earth,” explained Hatem Ouda, professor at the Cairo University Institute of Astronomy. In the Western Desert governorate of New Valley, residents feared they would be attacked by reptiles in the dark. The full eclipse was seen in many parts of the world, except North America, where the next eclipse will be visible on 10 December. Translated from the Arabic Edition
