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HOMEPAGE OBSERVING by Gary Seronik
A Particularly Dark Full Moon
Observing here from British Columbia, Canada, we had perfect weather for this lunar eclipse. My impression is that this was a considerably darker eclipse than the last one I saw back on October 27, 2004, that fateful night when the Red Sox won the World Series. It also seemed slightly less colorful to me, though impressions of color are pretty subjective. I’d describe the Moon at mid-eclipse as being a kind of muddy reddish brown hue transitioning to pale yellow where brightest.
But again, the most noticeable factor was that it was a dark eclipse. To the naked eye, the dimmest limb of the Moon was difficult to make out, though in binoculars (and in the camera viewfinder) it never disappeared. Perhaps the best view though was in my 15×45 image-stabilized binoculars. Even though I’ve seen a few total lunar eclipses now, I never fail to be impressed by the sheer weirdness of seeing the full Moon floating in a field of stars. It's just plain strange.
Overall, it’s been a memorable event, though I’m glad I’ve got the pictures since by the time I get to bed and wake up again, it’ll all seem like a dream I’m sure.
Do you have pictures or impressions of this eclipse? Share your images in our Photo Gallery, or post a comment below.
P.S. The rest of this week makes for great observing too. Tomorrow the asteroid Vesta encounters Jupiter, and at week's end West Coasters will be treated to a possible outburst from the Aurigid meteor shower.
This view of totality was shot at mid-eclipse on August 28, 2007, from British Columbia, Canada, using a home-built 8-inch f/4.2 Newtonian reflector. The brightest star in the picture is about 8th magnitude.
S&T: Gary Seronik
Overall, it’s been a memorable event, though I’m glad I’ve got the pictures since by the time I get to bed and wake up again, it’ll all seem like a dream I’m sure.
Do you have pictures or impressions of this eclipse? Share your images in our Photo Gallery, or post a comment below.
P.S. The rest of this week makes for great observing too. Tomorrow the asteroid Vesta encounters Jupiter, and at week's end West Coasters will be treated to a possible outburst from the Aurigid meteor shower.
Posted by Gary Seronik, August 28, 2007
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First comments (from 19)
Lunar Eclipse
Posted by Debra J, Williams
August 28, 2007 At 07:03 AM PDT
The moon was very low in the sky just as it entered totality. Through my Astroscan, it appeared to have more of a three dimensional look than just observing it with the naked eye. It was a dark eclipse, bluish gray, but I did detect some coppery red. I have noticed over the years one of the most remakrable things about eclipses is how still and silent it is.
dimensionality
Posted by grecodan
August 28, 2007 At 08:11 AM PDT
I, too, noted the distinct dimensionality of the moon during totality. Through my 10x50 field glasses it looked like a painting, with a greyish center and deep orange toward the limbs. As totality neared the end, the western limb brightened, as if the painter were adding a wash of thin white over the orange. The faint background stars were lovely. Truly one of the most spectacular lunar eclipses I've ever seen.
First time
Posted by Chris Wells
August 28, 2007 At 08:52 AM PDT
This was my first lunar eclipse. Hard to believe for most of you veteran star-gazers, I know. But it's true. My eight year old son and I enjoyed watching this eclipse together from the porch swing. It was a strange sight as the shadow crept across the moon and we watched the muddy brown moon float eerily toward the western horizon. It took longer than I thought it would for the entire moon to be covered. I can't wait for the next one!
Dark Moon
Posted by Daren
August 28, 2007 At 09:42 AM PDT
I spent the morning from the backyard of my Utah home watching the beautiful lunar eclipse with my wife. I was impressed with the view in my 8” dob and 10x50 binoculars. The viewing was breathtaking even if we had to wait for the occasional cloud to pass. While we waited we caught glimpses of the Andromeda Galaxy high in the sky when viewing that early in the morning and the Orion Nebula rising in the east.
Eclipse morning
Posted by Alan MacRobert
August 28, 2007 At 09:45 AM PDT
A beautiful dawn partial eclipse, it was, from here in eastern Massachusetts. I tried to time first contact naked-eye, but a scattering of little clouds got in the way. The scene, however, was gorgeous -- a spooky French romantic painting with the moonlit clouds and sky, dark August trees, and dark land.
The part of the Moon in the umbra was easily visible naked-eye even before the umbra was 1/4 of the way across the Moon (5:11 a.m. EDT, Moon altitude 8 degrees, Sun altitude -10 degrees).
Despite the brightening sky and the Moon getting lower and dimmer, the umbra was even more evident, glowing luminous orange-red, by the time the show ended. This happened when the Moon, still only partially eclipsed, disappeared behind a low cloud bank at 5:36 a.m. (Moon altitude 4 degrees, Sun altitude -5 degrees). A wonderful morning all told. --Alan MacRobert
Fade to Black
Posted by Brian
August 28, 2007 At 10:32 AM PDT
This eclipse was very dark from my viewing spot in south-central Pennsylvania just west of Harrisburg. The weather here was good (no clouds), although the air temp was 70F and the dewpoint was 66F (85% relative humidity), so we were experiencing some ground fog in low-lying areas. Our viewing point was elevated on a hill, so the ground fog was not much of a problem for us. At 4:50 AM EDT, the moon was nice and bright, and we had good viewing as the moon began moving into the umbra, especially as the shadow crossed Tycho and Mare Crisium. The viewing remained good as the moon entered totality at 5:52 a.m. EDT. However, as the moon slipped into totality, we noticed how dark the area around Oceanus Procellarum, Mare Ibrium, Aristarchus, etc., had become. The moon was quite low on our horizon by this time, and the eclipsed moon continued to darken quickly. By 6:10 a.m. EDT, the moon had almost completely disappeared from view; we could only see a very faint hint of a crescent from the southeastern edge of the moon through my Orion XT4.5. We waited a bit to see if conditions might improve, but the moon was going to set shortly and it became was obvious that we had seen as much of this eclipse as we were going to see. A good early morning even though we missed seeing a coppery or red moon hanging in totality.
Darkness During Lunar Eclipse
Posted by Roland Dechesne
August 28, 2007 At 12:30 PM PDT
From my acreage 55 km (~34 miles) southeast of downtown Calgary, Alberta, I too was impressed by the darkness of the eclipse. Even prior to totality starting, the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) was an easy unaided-eye target almost straight overhead. Elusive Triangulum Galaxy was glimpsed by me early on during totality, prior to the dawn's encroaching glow. I usually have difficulty with M33 the even at dark star parties. According to my Sky Quality Meter, the skies at that time were averaged 21.33 mag/sq arcsec, better than the previous best skies I had recorded at my site. This reading reflects, in part, the recent passage of a large rainy cold front -- but still it underscores just how dark this particular lunar eclipse was.
Lunar Eclipse from California
Posted by Todd Hansen
August 28, 2007 At 02:15 PM PDT
Observed this weeks Lunar Eclipse from the outskirts of the California desert town of Barstow. Was on the hill top which is the California Veterans Home with my friend Glenn Yokum who is a resident there. The skies were totally clear and dry with a very mild warm breeze from the west.
Glenn and I both remarked how sharp and distinct the shadow edge was for this eclipse, observing naked eye and with 10 x 50 binoculars. At totality we both noted how difficult it was to make out features of the Lunar Mare. This was one of the darkest I have seen in nearly 40 years of observing, and would place it at a very nearly a “1” on the Danjon scale for darkness.
from northern Colorado
Posted by Alan Silverstein
August 28, 2007 At 02:19 PM PDT
Went to bed with overcast and rain. At 0230 MDT, thinning remnants, silvery, and mostly an unobscured view of the moon as it entered partial and total eclipse. I saw it as orange to brown, noticeably dark, relatively colorless (no red at all). Also noticed how bright/white the edge near the umbra was even after totality started; maybe a relative effect.
Yes, very peaceful and slow. Warm enough to lay out on a driveway watching it from in town. Also noticed M31 naked-eye visible during totality. Fond memory of binocular view of the golden moon at mid-totality surrounded by at least five dim, nearby stars.
Perfect Eclipse
Posted by Brian V. Staples
August 28, 2007 At 02:44 PM PDT
From my front yard in San Diego, the sky was clear and still, the night air warm, and the Moon blazing brightly overhead. As the Moon slipped into the umbral shadow, I could see the disctinct knibbling away of the disk, until the Moon was fully immersed in the umbra. As reported elsewhere, it was a darker than usual Lunar eclipse. I personally noticed a lack of the distinctive reddish hue; rather this eclipse had a brownish smokey color to it, which in a way made it a more memorable event.
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comments (19)