lunar eclipse Archives

November 9, 2022November 9, 2022 by Nancy Atkinson

One Total Lunar Eclipse Photo to Rule Them All

A composite image from the November 8, 2022 total lunar eclipse showing the moon in various stages throughout the night. Credit and copyright: Andrew McCarthy.

We’ve seen some great images from the total lunar eclipse this week. But this one might top them all. Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy created this incredible composite image, showing the Moon in various stages of the eclipse throughout the night.

“The size and shape of Earth’s shadow is clearly visible here,” McCarthy said on Twitter. “These events are absolutely magical to witness and quite surreal.”

November 8, 2022November 8, 2022 by Nancy Atkinson

Stunning Photos from the November 8, 2022 Total Lunar Eclipse

The colors of totality of the November 8, 2022 Lunar eclipse. Credit and copyright: Eliot Herman.

Did the skies above you cooperate this morning to see the total lunar eclipse? Mine did not, and Fraser reports he was clouded out as well. But thankfully, we can live vicariously through all of the wonderful friends and astrophotographers who have shared their jaw-dropping photos of the blood Moon, Beaver Moon total lunar eclipse. This is the last total lunar eclipse until March 14, 2025.

Our lead image, a composite from University of Arizona Professor Eliot Herman shows a series of views throughout the eclipse. “This Lunar eclipse had soft gradations of color that was quite beautiful,” Herman said on Flickr. “This series of photos begins just before totality and ends just after totality. All images are 15 images stacked captured with a Questar telescope, Baader UV/IR filter, and a Nikon Z7II.”

May 19, 2022May 19, 2022 by Nancy Atkinson

The Lunar Eclipse, Seen From the International Space Station

A partially eclipsed Moon playing hide and seek with the solar panel of the International Space Station. Credit: ESA-S.Cristoforetti

If you were able to witness the lunar eclipse on May 15-16, 2022, the view of the dark red Moon was stunning. But what would such an eclipse look like from space?

Wonder no longer. ESA/Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti captured a series of photos of the lunar eclipse from her unique vantage point aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

November 15, 2021November 15, 2021 by David Dickinson

Our Complete Guide to November’s ‘Almost Total’ Lunar Eclipse

Friday morning’s partial lunar eclipse will flirt with with totality, as the longest for more than a century.

If you’re like us, we never miss a chance to catch a lunar eclipse, be it penumbral, partial or total. Lunar eclipses are a great time to catch the surety of the clockwork Universe at its best, as the Moon slides into and then exits the Earth’s shadow.

First the bad news: Friday morning’s eclipse in the early hours of November 19^th isn’t completely total. However, the good news is that at its maximum around 9:04 Universal Time (UT)/4:04 AM Eastern Time (EST) the eclipse narrowly misses totality, at 97.5% partial.

May 19, 2021May 25, 2021 by David Dickinson

‘Super-Blood Moon’ Total Lunar Eclipse Set For May 26th

The first total lunar eclipse of 2021 occurs early next week and features the largest Full Moon of the year.

Ready for the lunar eclipse drought to come to an end? It’s been a while since we’ve watched the Moon pass through the Earth’s dark inner shadow, to be sure. 2020 featured four lunar eclipses… all of which were faint penumbrals. In fact, you have to go all the waaaaay back to January 21^st, 2019 (remember 2019?) to remember the last total lunar eclipse. But that wait ends next Wednesday morning on May 26^th, with a very short total lunar eclipse, centered on the Pacific region.

November 25, 2020November 26, 2020 by David Dickinson

Catch Monday Morning’s Subtle Lunar Eclipse

A penumbral lunar eclipse in the early morning hours of November 30^th marks the start of the last eclipse season for 2020.

Howling at the Moon Sunday night? Sunday night into Monday morning November 30^th features not only the penultimate Full Moon for 2020, but the final lunar eclipse of the year, with a penumbral eclipse of the Moon.

June 2, 2020June 2, 2020 by David Dickinson

How to See This Friday’s Penumbral Lunar Eclipse

Eclipse season resumes on June 5th, with a fine penumbral lunar eclipse.

Are you cursing the June Full Moon as it thwarts your dreams of deep-sky imaging this week? Fear not; said Moon is actually the first astronomical draw for June 2020, as this coming weekend’s Full Moon marks the start of second eclipse season for 2020, with a penumbral lunar eclipse.

March 4, 2020March 4, 2020 by Brian Koberlein

During A Lunar Eclipse, It’s A Chance To See Earth As An Exoplanet

With the lunar horizon in the foreground, the Earth passes in front of the Sun on September 27, 2015 in this simulation, revealing the red ring of sunrises and sunsets along the limb of the planet responsible for illuminating the Moon during the eclipse. The clarity of the stratosphere at eclipse time can greatly affect lunar brightness during totality. The Earth and Sun are in Virgo for observers on the Moon with the bright star Beta Virginis at top. Click to see the video. Credit: NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio

There are several ways to look for alien life on distant worlds. One is to listen for radio signals these aliens might send, such as SETI and others are doing, but another is to study the atmospheres of exoplanets to find bio-signatures of life. But what might these signatures be? And what would they appear to our telescopes?

January 8, 2020January 8, 2020 by David Dickinson

Our Guide to this Friday’s Penumbral Lunar Eclipse

Penumbral Eclipse — A subtle penumbral lunar eclipse from 2016. Image credit and copyright: Dave Walker.

Ready for the very first lunar eclipse of the year? The first eclipse season of 2020 comes to an end Friday, with a penumbral lunar eclipse. This season overlaps with 2019, when it kicked off with the Boxing Day annular solar eclipse of December 26^th, 2019.

January 11, 2019January 28, 2019 by David Dickinson

Our Complete Guide to the January 21st Total Lunar Eclipse

Total Eclipse — The Moon just a few minutes from the end of totality on October 8th. 2014. Credit and Copyright: Alan Dyer.

By now, you’ve heard the news. One of the top astronomy events for 2019 is coming right up on the night of January 20^th into the morning of the 21^st with a total eclipse of the Moon. There’s lots of hype circulating around this one, as it assumes the meme of the “SuperBloodWolf Moon eclipse” ’round ye ole web.