Total Lunar Eclipse 2000

On January 20th, 2000 the century's first total lunar eclipse occurred. The images below were taken from the roof of Building 2 at Black Hawk College using a Nikon CoolPix 950 digital camera in conjunction with an 8 inch Celestron C8 Plus Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope with a 40mm eyepiece. Viewing conditions as the Moon began moving into the Earth's shadow were ideal. However, at about 9:30 p.m. a thin blanket of nimbostratus clouds obscured the Moon. The Moon was still visible through the clouds, but did not allow clear pictures to be taken. Views of the eclipse in totality were possible in breaks in the clouds, but the spectacular red color reported in other parts of the country was only faintly visible through the telescope. No pictures were possible at this time either. Over all it was a disappointing celestial event due to the weather. We'll hope for better conditions next time!

Click on the image to view the full size image.

  
The left image was taken at 9:17 p.m. The right image was taken at 9:39 p.m. through a break in the clouds.