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If you miss tonight’s winter solstice lunar eclipse, the first since 1638, no worries. It will happen again in 84 years.
Beginning at 12:33 a.m. Wednesday, the earth’s shadow will begin to appear in dark red at the moon’s edge. Within an hour, the moon will be entirely consumed by the shadow and the effect will last for about 72 minutes.
Unfortunately, this once-in-several lifetimes event will occur on a night with cloudy, snowy forecast.
National Weather Service Meteorologist David Beachler in Romeoville said he expects 100 percent cloud coverage that will be accompanying a snow-filled front moving in today that will last until Wednesday night.
“You’re probably not going to see much of anything at all,” Beachler said. “This is a pretty wide coverage system coming in. Any chance of seeing (the eclipse) would be in Pennsylvania or the Carolinas, possibly Tennessee.”
Adler Planetarium Astronomer Larry Ciupik said the last eclipse that ever came close to the winter solstice was in 1991.
“It’s not really a common event, that’s why we are so excited about it,” the Westchester resident said.
Ciupik verified the date of the last winter solstice lunar eclipse with tables created by NASA that go back 3,000 years. An eclipse event was widely viewed as an evil omen, and as a result, used as an advantage by the less superstitious and more educated.
“Columbus in 1504 was marooned on a Caribbean island and was being fed by natives but it was getting costly for them,” Ciupik said. “Columbus looked in his charts and said if they didn’t want to feed them, he was going to make the moon disappear and turn to blood. They didn’t believe him. That night it started happening. They came back and said: ‘We’ll feed you.’”
T.E. Lawrence, or Lawrence of Arabia, used the eclipse to his advantage when he and his Arab irregulars took the Turkish-controlled city of Aqaba in 1917.
“They were very superstitious, he was able to use that fact to help his taking of that city,” Ciupik said.
A mutiny that began on the death of Caesar Augustus was quelled when an eclipse occurred, the troops believing it was a sign from the dead emperor.
Ciupik said he was not too optimistic about actually seeing the eclipse tonight.
“We always do events on the eclipse. It’s going to be such bad weather, but we are going to do it anyway,” he said.
Ciupik will begin lecturing at Adler beginning at 11:30 p.m. and expects to be there until 3 a.m.
“Totality ends at seven minutes to 3 a.m., “ he said.
The winter solstice occurs exactly at the time the Earth’s axial tilt is furthest from the sun. Though the winter solstice lasts only a moment in time, the term is also a turning point. Depending on the calendar, the winter solstice occurs on Dec. 21 or 22 each year in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the shortest day, and longest night of the year.
If you miss tonight’s winter solstice lunar eclipse, the first since 1638, no worries. It will happen again in 84 years.
Beginning at 12:33 a.m. Wednesday, the earth’s shadow will begin to appear in dark red at the moon’s edge. Within an hour, the moon will be entirely consumed by the shadow and the effect will last for about 72 minutes.
Unfortunately, this once-in-several lifetimes event will occur on a night with cloudy, snowy forecast.
National Weather Service Meteorologist David Beachler in Romeoville said he expects 100 percent cloud coverage that will be accompanying a snow-filled front moving in today that will last until Wednesday night.
“You’re probably not going to see much of anything at all,” Beachler said. “This is a pretty wide coverage system coming in. Any chance of seeing (the eclipse) would be in Pennsylvania or the Carolinas, possibly Tennessee.”
Adler Planetarium Astronomer Larry Ciupik said the last eclipse that ever came close to the winter solstice was in 1991.
“It’s not really a common event, that’s why we are so excited about it,” the Westchester resident said.
Ciupik verified the date of the last winter solstice lunar eclipse with tables created by NASA that go back 3,000 years. An eclipse event was widely viewed as an evil omen, and as a result, used as an advantage by the less superstitious and more educated.
“Columbus in 1504 was marooned on a Caribbean island and was being fed by natives but it was getting costly for them,” Ciupik said. “Columbus looked in his charts and said if they didn’t want to feed them, he was going to make the moon disappear and turn to blood. They didn’t believe him. That night it started happening. They came back and said: ‘We’ll feed you.’”
T.E. Lawrence, or Lawrence of Arabia, used the eclipse to his advantage when he and his Arab irregulars took the Turkish-controlled city of Aqaba in 1917.
“They were very superstitious, he was able to use that fact to help his taking of that city,” Ciupik said.
A mutiny that began on the death of Caesar Augustus was quelled when an eclipse occurred, the troops believing it was a sign from the dead emperor.
Ciupik said he was not too optimistic about actually seeing the eclipse tonight.
“We always do events on the eclipse. It’s going to be such bad weather, but we are going to do it anyway,” he said.
Ciupik will begin lecturing at Adler beginning at 11:30 p.m. and expects to be there until 3 a.m.
“Totality ends at seven minutes to 3 a.m., “ he said.
The winter solstice occurs exactly at the time the Earth’s axial tilt is furthest from the sun. Though the winter solstice lasts only a moment in time, the term is also a turning point. Depending on the calendar, the winter solstice occurs on Dec. 21 or 22 each year in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the shortest day, and longest night of the year.
