Credit & Copyright: Jean-Luc Dauvergne
(Ciel et Espace);
Music: ValŐre Leroy & Sophie Huet
(Space-Music)
Explanation:
If the full Moon suddenly faded, what would you see?
The answer during the total lunar
eclipse in 2011 was recorded in a dramatic time lapse
video from
Tajikistan.
During a
total lunar eclipse, the Earth moves between the Moon and the Sun,
causing the moon to fade dramatically.
The Moon never gets completely dark,
though, since the Earth's atmosphere
refracts
some light.
As the featured video begins, the scene may appear to be daytime and sunlit, but actually
it is a nighttime and lit by the glow of the full Moon.
As the
Moon becomes eclipsed and
fades, the wind dies down and background stars can be seen reflected in foreground
lake.
Most spectacularly, the
sky surrounding the eclipsed moon
suddenly appears to be
full of stars and highlighted
by the busy plane of our
Milky Way Galaxy.
The sequence repeats with a closer view, and the final image shows the placement
of the eclipsed Moon near the
Eagle,
Swan,
Trifid, and
Lagoon nebulas.
Nearly two hours after the eclipse started, the moon emerges from the Earth's shadow
and its bright full
glare again dominates the sky.
This Wednesday another
total lunar eclipse will take place --
but this one will be during a
rare
Super Blue Blood Moon.
January February March April May June July August September October November December |
|
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: total lunar eclipse
Publications with words: total lunar eclipse
See also: