Approaching Totality Total eclipse of the Moon - February 21st 2008 Shown on the BBC's Sky at Night programme #664 "Return to the Moon", March 2008 This image has also appeared on Terry Pratchett's website and in Dr Brian May's soapbox. Allegedly, Dr May also used it as his desktop wall-paper The dimming that occurs isn't absolute and a totally eclipsed Moon often exhibits a red or coppery colour. This is caused by light from the Sun passing through the thin skin of atmosphere at the edge of the Earth. Blue light gets scattered while red light passes through (the same effect which causes a red sky sunset), and is bent (refracted) inward causing the Earth's shadow to infill and the Moon to appear orange-red as a consequence. The darkeness of a total lunar eclipse very much depends on what's happening in the Earth's atmosphere at the time of the eclipse. Events such as volcanic eruptions or large quantities of cloud can block the atmospherically refracted light from the Sun and make the eclipse appear very dark. This particular image was taken just before totality on the night of February 21st 2008. It was shot from the garden of Farthings, the home of World famous astronomer Sir Patrick Moore, during a BBC Sky at Night filming session. Cloud and mist hampered much of the evening but judicious eyes were able to shoot totality through random cloud gaps. |
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