Times and Phases of the Total Lunar Eclipse of December 21, 2010
From start to finish, December's lunar eclipse lasts about three hours and twenty-eight minutes (not including the penumbral phases which are very difficult to see). The partial eclipse begins as the Moon's eastern edge slowly moves into the Earth's umbral shadow. During the partial phases, it takes just over an hour for the Moon's orbital motion to carry it entirely within the Earth's dark umbra. The color and brightness of the totally eclipsed Moon can vary considerably from one eclipse to another. Dark eclipses are caused by volcanic gas and dust which filters and blocks much of the Sun's light from reaching the Moon. The recent volcanic eruptions of Mount Merapi in Indonesia may possibly result in a darker eclipse that may take on a deep red or brown color during the total phase. After the total phase ends, it is once again followed by a partial eclipse as the Moon gradually leaves the umbral shadow. The Visual Appearance of Lunar Eclipses describes what each of these eclipse phases looks like.
The total phase of a lunar eclipse is called totality. At this time, the Moon is completely immersed within the Earth's dark umbral shadow. During the December 21 eclipsetotality will last just over 72 minutes. This is quite a bit longer than the last total lunar eclipse on February 21, 2008 which lasted 50 minutes.
The major phases of the eclipse occur as follows (all times are GMT or Greenwich Mean Time). The partial eclipse commences with first umbral contact at 06:33 GMT. Totality begins at 07:41 GMT and lasts until 08:53 GMT. The partial phases end at 10:01 GMT. Eclipse times for time zones in the United States and Canada are shown in the following table.
| Total Lunar Eclipse of December 21, 2010 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | North America | Pacific | ||||||
| Event | GMT | AST | EST | CST | MST | PST | AKST | HST |
| Partial Eclipse Begins: | 06:33 am | 02:33 am | 01:33 am | 12:33 am | 11:33 pm* | 10:33 pm* | 09:33 pm* | 08:33 pm* |
| Total Eclipse Begins: | 07:41 am | 03:41 am | 02:41 am | 01:41 am | 12:41 am | 11:41 pm* | 10:41 pm* | 09:41 pm* |
| Mid-Eclipse: | 08:17 am | 04:17 am | 03:17 am | 02:17 am | 01:17 am | 12:17 am | 11:17 pm* | 10:17 pm* |
| Total Eclipse Ends: | 08:53 am | 04:53 am | 03:53 am | 02:53 am | 01:53 am | 12:53 am | 11:53 pm* | 10:53 pm* |
| Partial Eclipse Ends: | 10:01 am | 06:01 am | 05:01 am | 04:01 am | 03:01 am | 02:01 am | 01:01 am | 12:01 am |
| Key to Time Zones | |
|---|---|
| Zone | Description |
| GMT | Greenwich Mean Time |
| AST | Atlantic Standard Time (GMT - 4 hours) |
| EST | Eastern Standard Time (GMT - 5 hours) |
| CST | Central Standard Time (GMT - 6 hours) |
| MST | Mountain Standard Time (GMT - 7 hours) |
| PST | Pacific Standard Time (GMT - 8 hours) |
| AKST | Alaska Standard Time (GMT - 9 hours) |
| HST | Hawaii Standard Time (GMT - 10 hours) |
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