TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE MOON: Earlier today, Jan. 31st, the full Moon passed directly through the shadow of Earth, producing a total lunar eclipse. The shadowed Moon turned a coppery shade of orange visible in Asia, Australia and much of North America. Chirag Upreti sends this picture from New York City:
"The eclipse was gorgeous," says Upreti. "As morning twilight illuminated the landscape, the Moon was already low on the horizon. What a stunning scene to absorb on a really cold morning! Just as I was taking the picture, an airplane passed over the Statue of Liberty and a sea gull photobombed the eclipsed Moon at the same time."
More moonshots--lots more--may be found in the realtime photo gallery:
Realtime Lunar Eclipse Photo Gallery
LUNAR ECLIPSE BALLOON LAUNCH: At 4 o'clock this morning (Jan. 31st), Spaceweather.com and the students of Earth to Sly Calculus launched a balloon in the dark. Its mission: To photograph a total lunar eclipse. The full Moon was just entering Earth's shadow at the time of the launch, and totality was underway by the time balloon reached the stratosphere. (continued below)
A Sony A7s camera photographed the orange lunar disk more than 100,000 feet above Earth's surface--or at least we think it did. After the balloon exploded (as planned), the payload parachuted back to Earth, landing in a remote area of the Sierra Nevada mountains.The footage may require a few days to recover. Fingers crossed!
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
UNIQUE VALENTINE'S GIFT: Nothing says "I love you" like a moonstone from space. On Jan. 27, 2018, using a space weather balloon, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus flew a payload-full of moonstone pendants 115,158 ft above Earth's surface. This one passed through an icy sun halo en route to the stratosphere:
You can have one for $179.95. Each necklace comes with a greeting card showing the jewelry in flight and telling the story of its journey to the edge of space. Sales support the Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray ballooning program and hands-on STEM research.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All proceeds support hands-on STEM education