"Skygazers with a clear view in North America and Europe were greeted with a celestial treat early Tuesday, as a unique total lunar eclipse turned the Moon pink, coppery or even a blood red.
Coinciding eerily with the northern hemisphere's mid-winter solstice -- for the first time in almost four centuries --the eclipse showed the Sun, the Earth and its satellite as they directly aligned, with the Moon swinging into the cone of shadow cast by its mother planet.
Despite being in shadow, the Moon did not become invisible, as there was still residual light deflected towards it by our atmosphere.
Most of this refracted light is in the red part of the spectrum and as a result the Moon, seen from Earth, turned a reddish, coppery or orange hue, sometimes even brownish.
The fact that the eclipse fell on the exact date of the winter solstice is an extremely rare occurrence and it will only happen next in December 21, 2094, according to Geoff Chester of the US Naval Observatory, quoted by NASA.
The last time it happened was on December 21, 1638."
DEAR RED MOON, I WILL SEE YOU WHEN I'M A CENTURY OLD.
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