Greg C's Eclipse

by Greg Claytor

I stepped out for my first observation as the moon was entering the penumbra at about 2:00 a.m. and continued to watch over the next hour. To me, this was the most amazing and exciting part of the eclipse. I watched as the bright white moon was enveloped by our shadow. It was like watching a curtain being drawn in slow motion... on a very massive scale. It was amazing to witness as the edge of the shadow overtook the moon's surface. The contrast was startling, especially the last quarter.

As the moon began to enter the umbra I was struck by how red it began to look. I was expecting our earth's shadow to be much blacker. At mid eclipse the moon took on a reddish brown color, but the contrast seemed reversed. Normally the cratered areas appear darker than the bright white mare areas. During the eclipse the cratered areas appeared a brighter red while the mare areas where a darker brown. I suppose the crater walls being somewhat vertical might better reflect stray light than the flat surface.

I was tired by 3:40 and decided to go inside. I couldn't get to sleep and kept thinking about how rare this event was. I went back outside at about 5:15 a.m. and watched as the moon began to reveal itself again. The curtain was drawn open and soon the event was over.

Six months ago I wouldn't have gotten out of bed at all. I like this hobby.