It's pretty cool to see the moon turn red.
The eclipse begins at shortly after 8 p.m. ET, but the first hour or so won't be noticeable as the moon becomes lightly shaded by Earth's outer shadow, called the penumbra. Things get real interesting at 9:14 p.m. ET when the moon begins sliding into Earth's full shadow, or umbra.
A dark and growing scallop will then gradually envelop Earth's only natural satellite. Once in total shadow at 10:23 p.m. ET, the moon might turn a shade of deep red that frightened the ancients. No two eclipses are alike, however, and astronomers can't say for sure what color to expect, if any.
It's cloudy here in SE Wisconsin. Bummer. Now, I have to wait until 2007 for the next one.
Posted by: Sean Hackbarth | Wednesday, October 27, 2004 at 11:28 PM