On March 21st of a certain year there was a lunar eclipse what were the coordinates of the moon on that day

Right ascension and declination

PLEASE HELP! :) Thanks!!

@permeative pedagogy, it is a HYPOTHETICAL lunar eclipse.


Declination = 0
Right Ascension = 180 degrees


Remember: right ascension is DEFINED to equal zero as the coordinate of the SUN from Earth on the day of the March Equinox.

For a lunar eclipse, the moon is directly opposite that.

We know the declination needs to be zero, because that is the equator of the Earth projected in to space. The Sun passes through the celestial equator on either equinox, by definition of an equinox. If an eclipse of either kind will occur, so will the Moon.

On March 21st, the Sun is at RA 0h and declination 0°. For the Moon to be eclipsed, it must be opposite to the Sun, therefore at RA 12h and declination 0°.
In practice, these figures aren't always exact. For example, in the case of a penumbral eclipse, the Moon may up to 1.5° above or below this position.

Okie's got it wrong again. The full moon in March 1810 was on the 20th Washington time (21st at Greenwich). So she's given you the position of the Moon the day after. Come on Okie, check your figures. How can there be an eclipse when the moon is 27 minutes of RA away from the point opposite the Sun?

Oh, and another thing. Okie's ephemeris is for 12.39 pm Washington time, not 9.39 pm. Why?
ROFL indeed!

Okay Okie, let me say it again nice and clearly.
The full moon was 20th March 1810 at 9.39 pm Washington time, not the 21st.
The ephemeris you gave was not for 9.39 pm but 12.39 pm Washington time. The reason for this escapes me (other than carelessness).
Your lunar coordinates were therefore for a time 15 hours after the eclipse, so of course the Moon is going to have moved several degrees away and your answer is therefore misleading and wrong.

You say "Whether or not there was an eclipse at that time IS IRRLELEVANT"