Lunar Eclipse
by Dan Heim
Photographer Comments:
Optics: Zuiko 200mm
telephoto lens at f/10
Camera: Canon EOS 20D, exposures from 1/4 second to 1 second at
ISO 3200
August 28th, 2007, Heimhenge, AZ, 0300 MST
This fine lunar eclipse occurred in clear skies during a momentary break in our usually cloudy monsoon season. The Moon is seen (in the third image) against the faint stars of Aquarius. The brightest star in the field is Sig Aqr (mag 4.9).
This sequence of images shows two interesting aspects of this celestial phenomenon. In the first image, you see the Earth's umbral shadow cast on the Moon, with the peculiar curvature and haziness of the "terminator" typical of these events. In fact, the appearance of this "terminator" suggested to early Greek astronomers that it was indeed the shadow of the Earth, and thus was proof the Earth was round.
The second interesting feature is shown in the last image, a closeup view. The Moon always looks more 3D in an eclipse, this one even more so. It was a relatively bright eclipse, with the lower right edge most illuminated and in contrast with the dark maria at upper right. It looked so 3D that I could almost imagine reaching out and grabbing it. The brightness of a given lunar eclipse depends, of course, on the extent of cloud cover around the Earth. The more transparent the atmosphere, the brighter the refracted red light illuminating the Moon during totality.