Yep, Dick and I were up in the wee hours of this morning to gaze in awe at the amazing dark amber colored lunar eclipse. I took this photo at 2:33 a.m.
A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth blocks the sun's rays from the face of the moon. The moon is then fully in the shadow cast in space by the Earth. Today's partial eclipse was scheduled to begin at 1:33 a.m. Eastern and the total eclipse was to last between 2:41 a.m and 3:53 a.m., so I shot this photo 8 minutes before the total eclipse. The partial eclipse was to end at 5:01 a.m. It is an unusual occurrence because the last time a total lunar eclipse happened on the winter solstice (1st day of winter) was way back in the year 1638. The next time it will occur on the winter solstice will be the year 2094, so I figured it was this year or never for me. I convinced Dick of it, too. He stood behind me holding my upstretched arms steady to minimize my camera's movement. After the fact, we thought it would have been easier if I had lied flat on my back on the ground, but I liked that it turned into a two-person effort... a tender moment.