Total Lunar Eclipse on December 21, 2010 Falls on Winter Solstice

This year Winter Solstice is very momentous as it will be a full moon as well as a total lunar eclipse on December 21, 2010. The Moon's disk can take on a significantly multicolored look from dazzling orange to blood red and more occasionally dark brown to very dark gray in a total lunar eclipse and it will be observed globally by over 1.5 billion people on early Tuesday morning.

Image source: mreclipse.com

The word solstice is derived from the Latin word “sol” meaning sun, and “sistere”, to stand still and on the Astrological calendar the Winter solstice is one of the four cardinal points marking the chief seasonal shifts. Those people who like to stay up all night and sleep all day, Winter Solstice appeals.

It will be an advantage for sky watchers due to the fact that the moon will emerge high in the sky because the eclipse coincides with winter solstice. Across North America, Greenland and Iceland the eclipse will be noticeable to sky watchers and in fact the eclipse starts late in the evening of December 20 for observers in Western states. Before moonset, the initiation stages of the eclipse can be viewed in Western Europe and also after moonrise the later stages of the eclipse will be apparent in Western Asia.

Where the moon is above the horizon, generally eclipses of the moon can be observed anywhere in the hemisphere unlike a solar eclipse. The big thing regarding lunar eclipses is that lunar eclipses are completely safe to view without any special glasses or equipment, all you require is you own two eyes.

Video of December 21 2010 Solstice Full moon Total Lunar Eclipse Syncronicity from youtube: