lunar eclipse and Orion over West Bergholt
oil on canvas, framed, 1220mm x 910mm
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Midwinter over Essex: a total eclipse of the moon with a cloud bank moving in from the East. During the eclipse cloud previously lit by the moon turned gun metal grey and the earth to a soft, light black, as though Heaven were half shutting its eye. In this rare atmosphere, scattered house lights and the headlights of a car became more noticable. On the horizon orange light over Colchester brightened under an immense blue-black sky and indifferent constellations.
Right : Orion with three stars for his belt and Betelgeuse (the brightest red star) upper left with Riegel lower right
Lower centre : Canis Minor
Left : The moon is in Gemini with Castor & Pollux to the far left
At this moment the Earth is directly between the Sun and the moon but the moon it isn’t in shade. Sunlight is bent through Earths atmosphere turning it red before it falls on the moon. The amount of redness is described on the Danjon scale. This eclipse was about 3 on a scale of 0 (very dark) to 4 (lightish coppery/orange), which means that skies were fairly clear that night and there was not much cloud or particulate matter to stop light passing through.
After a volcanic eruption lunar eclipses are often much darker than this.
exhibition
On display at King's College Cambridge, with summer solstice moonrise, West Bergholt.