Total Lunar Eclipse – Last chance until 2014
Get up early the morning of December 10 for your last chance to see a total eclipse of the moon (in North America) until April 2014. Last year’s December lunar eclipse passed through the middle of the earth’s shadow and produced a really dark red moon; this eclipse will barely skim the southern edge of the earth’s umbra- expect a brighter eclipse this year with the moon’s southern edge more brightly lit. The event begins at 3:31 am, with the moon entering the earth’s penumbra and gets more interesting at 4:45 am, when the moon enters the dark umbra of the earth. You’ll need a clear western view to see the moon entering totality, as it hangs just 11° above the horizon. Totality begins at 6:05 am and lasts until 6:58 am, when the process reverses. The sun begins to intrude at 6:43 am, rising at 7:12 am that morning.
The moon sets at 7:17 am.
- lynda hall
Sources: USNO, Sky & Tel
