The first total lunar eclipse in 2011 took place last night, and astronomy fans were out photographing the event in full force.
The entire eclipse was visible from the eastern half of Africa, the Middle East, central Asia, and western Australia. Europe missed the first part of the eclipse because it happened before moonrise, but—with the exception of northern Scotland and northern Scandinavia—Europeans were able to see totality. Eastern Asia, eastern Australia, and New Zealand, meanwhile, missed the last stages of eclipse because they occurred after moonset.
In South America, observers in eastern Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina witnessed totality, but nothing was viewable from North America. Those in the U.S. should be able to see the December eclipse, however.
Those who did view and photograph the eclipse took to Flickr to share their shots. For more, check out the slideshow.
During a lunar eclipse, Earth comes between the sun and the moon so that all or part of the sun's light is blocked from the moon, according to NASA.
Wednesday's eclipse was notable for how long it lasted—100 minutes. The last eclipse to exceed this duration was in July 2000, according to astrophysicist Fred Espenak.
For those not in viewing areas, Google teamed up with Slooh to live stream the eclipse. It also posted a Google doodle with live shots that refreshed every two minutes.
Four partial solar and two total lunar eclipses are set to take place in 2011, which NASA said is "rather rare"; it will only happen six times in the 21st century—2011, 2029, 2047, 2065, 2076, and 2094. Wednesday was the first total lunar eclipse of the year, however. Another one will occur on December 10.
SEE THE SLIDESHOW
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