ABC June 16, 2011, 8:08 am
Longest eclipse in a decade
Stargazers in WA had the best view of the moon turning a blood-red colour when it entered the earth's shadow.
The ash from a volcano in Chile would have had little impact on this morning's lunar eclipse, the New South Wales Anglo-Australian Observatory says.
The moon turned a blood-red colour as it entered the Earth's shadow in the longest eclipse in more than a decade before dawn today.
Stargazers and astronomers in Western Australia have had the best view in the country, with cloud unfortunately blocking the eclipse for many in New South Wales.
The observatory's astronomer-in-charge, Professor Fred Watson, says the volcanic ash would have made little difference.
"It would put a little bit more dust into the atmosphere but really, it's the whole of the Earth's atmosphere that's causing that redness on the moon," he said.
"The volcanic dust's predominantly in the southern atmosphere, it would probably have made very little difference.
"The eclipse started in the small hours of this morning and by about 5:20am, the moon had completely entered the earth's shadow, and so it turned to red.
"The light from the sun filters through the Earth's atmosphere and actually falls on the moon's surface, so you get this blood-red effect."
He says the moon would have been spectacular for those who did see it.
He says if you could stand on the moon and watch the total lunar eclipse, the view would be even more dramatic.
"You would see the Earth blocking out the sun but with this really bright red ring around the Earth," he said.
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