Winter Solstice/Lunar Eclipse 2010

We have studied Winter Solstice as our Winter Celebration, as you know. But a cool thing happened that very night that we did not get to see in our area because of the snow that fell all night. We missed a total lunar eclipse. A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon passes behind the earth so that the earth blocks the sun's rays from striking the moon. This can occur only when the Sun, Earth and Moon are aligned exactly, or very closely so, with the Earth in the middle. (Wikipedia.com). The last total lunar eclipse on Winter Solstice took place about 500 years ago. Pretty neat from a historical standpoint.

I really wanted to see this, but didn't even try setting the alarm for 1:13 am the other night because now I have contracted a horrible germ that has made me sick and I figured I couldn't see it anyway. But lucky us! There were others who did get up in areas of North America where the weather was more favorable and took video so we can see what we missed.

This video comes from a man named William Castleman who is a professor in Florida. He likes scientific photography and making movies about it. The video is too good not to share with you, but I want to make sure I give Mr. Castleman the credit.

Winter Solstice Lunar Eclipse from William Castleman on Vimeo.