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Triple Play Totality
The partial phases of the 1982 total lunar eclipse are captured in this composite image.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
Celestron 8 + Nikon F2, Kodachrome 64, f/10
(click to see larger image)
A total lunar eclipse is a celestial event of great beauty. Unlike a total solar eclipse which can only be seen from a very tiny fraction of Earth's surface, a total lunar eclipse is visible to the entire night side of Earth. Few people have witnessed a total solar eclipse, but many have seen its lunar counterpart.
It has beeen over twenty years since I watched and photographed the total lunar eclipse of 1982 July 06, but the memories of this extrodinary event are still fresh. I watched that eclipse from the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay and I can still remember the image of the summer Milky Way and blood red Moon reflected in the bay. This diagram shows the basic geometry and contact times of the eclipse.
The 1982 eclipse was a member of the same Saros family which produced the great lunar eclipse of 2000 July 16. The duration of totality of the 2000 eclipse was a record breaking 1 hour and 47 minutes. Similarly, the 1982 duration was 1 hour and 43 minutes. The durations of these eclipses were so unusually long because the Moon passed almost exactly through the center of Earth's umbral shadow. In addition, the Moon was near apogee so that its orbital motion was at a minimum which prolonged its passage through the umbra (for more details, see: Total Lunar Eclipse: 2000 July 16).
I recently digitized some of my best photographs of this event and have posted them here. All times are given in UT or Universal Time which is the astronomical equivalent of civil time in Greenwich England. By convention, astronomers use UT as their time standard.
Click on each image to see a larger photo.
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Espenak & Telescope (TLE1982-402w)
Fred Espenak photographed the 1982 total lunar eclipse using a Celestron 8 inch telescope from the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay (Maryland).
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Full Moon (TLE1982-101w)
Although the penumbral phase of the eclipse began 18 minutes earlier (04:22 UT), there is no visible sign of this feeble shadow as a brilliant Full Moon lights up the summer sky.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Partial Eclipse Begins (TLE1982-102w)
The partial eclipse begins as the Moon starts its eastward passage through Earth's dark umbral shadow.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Moderate Partial Eclipse (TLE1982-104w)
Fifteen minutes after it begins, the Moon is nearly 25% into the Earth's dark umbra.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Long Exposure Partial (TLE1982-105w)
A long four second exposure of the partial eclipse reveals the inner edge of the umbral shadow. At this point (06:02 UT), almost half of the Moon's diameter is within the umbra.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Half-Way Partial (TLE1982-106w)
The eastern half of the Moon (measured across its diameeter), is fully within Earth's umbra by 06:10 UT (see diagram near top of page).
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Deep Partial Eclipse (TLE1982-108w)
Nearly three quarters of the Moon's disk lies within the umbra by 06:20 UT. The total phase begins only 18 minutes later.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Just A Sliver (TLE1982-109w)
Eight minutes before totality begins, the Moon's disk has been reduced to a narrow sliver. As the Moon's light fades, the sky grows dark permitting fainter stars to appear.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Totality Begins! (TLE1982-200+1w)
The last sliver of direct sunlight hangs along the western limb of the Moon and is extinguished as the total phase of the eclipse begins.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Partial Sequence 1-2 (TLE1982seq1-2w)
The partial phases of the 1982 total lunar eclipse are captured in this composite image.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Early Into Totality (TLE1982-202w)
Shortly after the total phase of the eclipse begins, the Moon's western (right) limb is much brighter than it's eastern (left) limb. The western limb is near the edge of Earth's umbral shadow which is not as dark as the deeper regions of the shadow where the eastern limb is located.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Mid-Totality (TLE1982-205+6w)
At mid-totality, the Moon appears a deep, dark, rich red color. The only sunlight it receives are the indirect rays which have been refracted through Earth's atmosphere where most of the blue, green and yellow light is filtered out through scattering.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Eclipse in Star Field (TLE1982-301w)
A wide angle (200mm) shot reveals the totally eclipse Moon suspended among the stars in eastern Sagittarius.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Eclipse in Milky Way (TLE1982-302w)
During the total eclipse, the blood red Moon stood in eastern Sagittarius among the start clusters and dust clouds of the summer Milky Way. Only an hour earlier, these features wre all hidden in the glare of the brilliant Full Moon.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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End of Totality (TLE1982-208+9w)
The eastern limb of the Moon slowly approaches the bright edge of Earth's shadow where it will slip back into sunlight and form a dazzlingly brilliant crescent.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Totality Trio (TLE1982-Trio2w)
A composite of three separate images captures the Moon at the beginning, middle and end of the total eclipse. The deep red color is due to Earth's atmosphere which filters out the blue, green and yellow light while transmitting most of the red sunlight to the Moon.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Eclipse Reflection (TLE1982-303w)
The last stages of the partial eclipse are reflected in the calm waters of the Chesapeake Bay.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Partial Eclipse in Twilight (TLE1982-120w)
The sky grows bright with morning twilight as the partial eclipse reaches its last stages.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Chesapeake Eclipse (TLE1982-304w)
As the partial eclipse nears its finale, morning twilight grows brighter as the Moon slowly sets over the Chesapeake Bay.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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After a Long Night (TLE1982-401w)
Fred Espenak photographs the last stages of the eclipse during morning twilight. The 8 inch Celestron telescope has a focal length of 2000mm.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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Grand Eclipse (TLE1982seq1-3w)
The partial phases and deep red totality are captured in this multi-image composite photograph.
Total Lunar Eclipse of 1982 July 06 (Chesapeake Bay, MD)
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All photographs, text and web pages are © Copyright 2007 by Fred Espenak, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. They may not be reproduced, published, copied or transmitted in any form, including electronically on the Internet or WWW, without written permission of the author. The photos have been digitally watermarked.
The photographs may be licensed for commercial, editorial, and educational use. Contact Espenak (at MrEclipse) for photo use in print, web, video, CD and all other media.
WebMaster: MrEclipse
Last revised: 2008 Feb 01
