Winter Solstice In The Dark Of The Moon

 

Winter Solstice 

 Yahoo News Says:

Red Moon: Lunar eclipse will make it a memorable solstice

by Richard Ingham Richard Ingham 2 hrs 13 mins ago

PARIS (AFP) – Weather permitting, skygazers in northern America and Europe are in for a treat in the early morning hours of Tuesday, when the first total lunar eclipse in almost three years is poised to turn the Moon pink, coppery or even a blood red.
Coinciding eerily with the northern hemisphere's mid-winter solstice, the eclipse will happen because the Sun, the Earth and its satellite are directly aligned, and the Moon swings into the cone of shadow cast by its mother planet.
The Moon does not become invisible, though, as there is still residual light that is deflected towards it by our atmosphere.
Most of this refracted light is in the red part of the spectrum and as a result the Moon, seen from Earth, turns a reddish, coppery or orange hue, sometimes even brownish.
"The entire event is visible from North America, Greenland and Iceland," says NASA's veteran eclipse expert Fred Espenak, pointing out that for observers in the western US and Canada, the show will start on Monday evening rather than Tuesday morning.
"Western Europe will see the beginning stages of the eclipse before moonset, while western Asia will get the later stages after moonrise."
The eclipse runs for three and a half hours, from 0633 GMT to 1001 GMT, although the stage of total eclipse -- when the Moon heads into the "umbra" cast by the Earth -- lasts from 0741 to 0853 GMT.
Two factors affect an eclipse's colour and brightness, says the US astronomy magazine Sky & Telescope.
"The first is simply how deeply the Moon goes into the umbra. The center of the umbra is much darker than its edges," it says.
"The other factor is the state of Earth's atmosphere along the sunrise-sunset line. If the air is very clear, the eclipse is bright. But if a major volcanic eruption has polluted the stratosphere with thin haze, the eclipse will be dark red, ashen gray, or blood-black."
Lunar eclipses have long been associated with superstitions and signs of ill omen, especially in battle.
The defeat of the Persian king Darius III by Alexander the Great in the Battle of Gaugamela in 331 BC was foretold by soothsayers when the Moon turned blood-red a few days earlier.
And an eclipse is credited with saving the life of Christopher Columbus and his crew when they were stranded without supplies on the coast of Jamaica.
According to legend, Columbus, looking at an astronomical almanac compiled by a German mathematician, realised that a total eclipse of the Moon would occur on February 29, 1504.
He called the native leaders and warned them if they did not help, he would make the Moon disappear the following night.
The warning, of course, came true, prompting the terrified people to beg Columbus to restore the Moon -- which he did, in return for as much food as his men needed. He and the crew were rescued on June 29, 1504.
The last total lunar eclipse took place on February 21 2008. Next year, says Espenak, will see two: on June 15 and December 10.
A solar eclipse happens when the Moon swings between the Earth and the Sun.
+ FOR FURTHER DETAILS:
- www.mreclipse.com/LEdata/TLE2010Dec21/TLE2010Dec21.html
- www.space.com/spacewatch/total-lunar-eclipse-moon-101217.html
- www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/highlights/111597159.html

And the Christian Science Monitor Says :

Lunar Eclipse: First to coincide with Winter Solstice in 372 years

The lunar eclipse early Tuesday morning will be the first total lunar eclipse to occur on the Winter solstice since 1638. The Winter solstice is the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

The lunar eclipse early Tuesday morning will be the first total lunar eclipse to occur on the Winter solstice since 1638. The Winter solstice is the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

In a lunar eclipse, the Earth's shadow covers the moon. This image of the moon was taken Oct. 27, 2004 during a total lunar eclipse by a Dobsonian telescope from the Coca-Cola Space Science Center in Columbus, Ga.
(Columbus Ledger-Enquirer/ Philip Wartena/AP/File)

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By Joe Rao, Skywatching columnist, Space.com
posted December 19, 2010 at 1:58 pm EST

The upcoming Dec. 21 full moon — besides distinguishing itself from the others in 2010 by undergoing a total lunar eclipse — will also take place on the same date as the solstice (the winter solstice if you live north of the equator, and the summer solstice if you live to the south).
Winter solstice is the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and marks the official beginning of winter. The sun is at its lowest in our sky because the North Pole of our tilted planet is pointing away from it.
So, how often does the December full moon coincide with the solstice? To answer this question, let's use Universal Time (UT), also sometimes referred to as Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). We do this because in answering this question, it's important to define a specific time zone.
IN PICTURES: We love the moon
For example, if you live in Honolulu, this December's full moon does not fall on the date of the solstice. Hawaii Time runs 10 hours behind GMT and the full moon occurs on Dec. 20 at 10:13 p.m. local time, while the solstice comes the following day at 1:38 p.m. Alaska, too, will have the full moon and the solstice occur on these respective dates, but in a time zone one hour later than Hawaii.
But both the full moon and solstice do occur on the same date (Dec. 21) in Greenwich, as well across the contiguous United States and Canada.
Prior to this year, there were solstice full moons in 1999 (Dec. 22) and 1980 (Dec. 21).
Interestingly, after this year, we'll have a long time to wait until we have a December full moon occur on the same date as the solstice: Dec. 21, 2094! And even more interesting – just like this year – that same full moon will fall into Earth's shadow in a total lunar eclipse. However, unlike this year, the 2094 eclipse will not be visible from the Western Hemisphere, but will be able to be seen from Europe, Africa and much of Asia. [How to Watch the Dec. 20 Total Lunar Eclipse]
Finally, this raises the question — prior to 2010, when was the last time that we had a total lunar eclipse occur on the same calendar date as the winter solstice? The answer, incredibly, takes us back nearly four centuries.
On Dec. 21, 1638, the full moon was in total eclipse from 1:12 to 2:47 UT. And the solstice occurred later in the day at 16:05 UT. [Amazing photos of a total lunar eclipse]
Once again, it's important to note that this occurred at the Greenwich meridian. For the Americas, this eclipse actually occurred during the evening of Dec. 20, while the solstice occurred on the following day.
IN PICTURES: We love the moon

• What's the Winter Solstice?
• Gallery: Photos of the Feb. 2008 Total Lunar Eclipse
• Top 10 Lunar Eclipse Facts

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Weather And Winter Solstice

I don't know where to begin .... um , of course , the weather's continuing saga here in Tripoli .Yesterday I was complaining that it was hot , windy and extremely dusty . This evening we had a change in the "Joe" for the better . At sunset the winds change , blowing from the north . That was good , since it meant cooler winds . Then a very fine , light misty rain began . It turned into a rain like you would have when a hurricane is approaching , but hasn't hit yet , fine but dense .Love it like that . A soaking misty velvet veil of water .That's the good news , the bad , it won't stay that way for long . By tomorrow it should be miserable again. Such a sad , sad thing to have hot dusty weather for Christmas .

The other thing is today is the Winter Solstice . The shortest day of the year ,the day with the least sun lite hours .There are all sorts of things that have been written about it . It's history , how it was celebrated and still is in places around the world .So , I just thought I would let you read what the National Geographic wrote on the subject . You know they are really far more qualified to tell you all about it than me .So .... Happy Solstice Day ! Enjoy the below National Geographic article.

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Solstice a Cause for Celebration Since Ancient Times

Brian Handwerk for National Geographic News

December 20, 2002

The winter solstice is again upon the Northern Hemisphere, and though the year's shortest day heralds the onset of winter it also promises the gradual return of the sun after a prolonged period of darkness. That there are holidays at the time of this astronomical event is no coincidence. Since ancient times, people have celebrated the solstice and observed it with many different cultural and religious traditions. Some of them survive to the present day—though not always in the form you might expect. In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice always occurs on or about December 21 and marks the beginning of the winter season. As many people notice, it's the shortest day of the year, featuring the least amount of daylight between sunrise and sunset. In the Southern Hemisphere, this is the time of the summer solstice and the longest day of the year. From now on, as the northern days grow longer so do the southern days get shorter. The term solstice means "sun stands still." On the year's two solstices (winter and summer) the sun appears to halt in its incremental journey across the sky and change little in position during this time. Of course, contrary to appearances from Earth, the sun's "changing position" throughout the year is actually caused by the rotation of the Earth on its tilted axis as it circles the sun each year. The solstice occurs twice a year (around December 22nd and June 21st) when the sun is farthest from the tilting planet's celestial equator. For half of each year the North Pole is tilted toward the sun, and for half of the year the South Pole enjoys that privilege. This phenomenon creates our changing seasons, because the hemisphere facing the sun receives longer and more powerful exposure to sunlight. In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice occurs in December when the tilting of the earth makes the sun appear to be furthest to the south and furthest away. In the Southern Hemisphere, both the seasons and solstices are reversed. Winter Solstice Has Been Celebrated Since Ancient Times The holiday timing of the winter solstice is rooted in ancient religions. Throughout history, humans have observed this seasonal milestone and created spiritual and cultural traditions to celebrate the rebirth of sunlight after the darkest period of the year. Modern pagans attempt to observe the solstice in the traditional manner of the ancients. "There is a resurgent interest in more traditional religious groups that is often driven by ecological motives," said Harry Yeide, a professor of religion at George Washington University. "These people do celebrate the solstice itself." Many more people observe the solstice while participating in modern holidays—even if they do not always realize the connection. The Solstice Christmas Connection Scholars don't agree about the exact origins of Christmas. "In the early years of the Christian church, the calendar was centered around Easter," said Yeide. "Nobody knows exactly where and when (perhaps in Egypt) they began to think it suitable to celebrate Christ's birth as well as the passion cycle (the crucifixion and resurrection)." Eastern churches traditionally celebrate Christmas on January 6, a date known as Epiphany in the West. The Gospels do not specify when Christ was born, so the date may have been originally chosen because of the belief that the season of Christ's conception would be that same as that of his death and resurrection. But the new celebration soon became co-mingled with traditional observances of the solstice. "As the Christmas celebration moved west," Yeide said "the date that had traditionally been used to celebrate the winter solstice became sort of available for conversion to the observance of Christmas. In the Western church, the December date became the date for Christmas." Traditional solstice celebrations existed in many cultures. The Roman feast of Saturnalia, honoring the God Saturn, was a week long December feast that included the observance of the winter solstice. Romans also celebrated the lengthening of days following the solstice by paying homage to Mithra—an ancient Persian god of light. Christian leaders of the time endeavored to attract pagans to their faith by adding Christian meaning to these existing festivals. "This gave rise to an interesting play on words," said Yeide. "In several languages, not just in English, people have traditionally compared the rebirth of the sun with the birth of the son of God." While religious observance of the winter solstice is not as common as it once was, many in the Northern Hemisphere will surely give thanks for the slow but steady return of the sun.

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