December 2011 lunar eclipse

A total lunar eclipse took place on 10 December 2011. It was the second of two total lunar eclipses in 2011, the first having occurred on June 15. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon is positioned just right in its orbit to pass through Earth's shadow.

Visibility
Asia, Australia, and other areas of the Pacific had the best visibility. European countries only saw a partial eclipse of a rising moon, while northwestern North America saw a partial eclipse of a setting moon.

The eclipse was seen over the Philippines despite cloudy and rainy weather over parts of Luzon and other areas. Photos were taken by groups of amateur astronomers from the Astronomical League of the Philippines (ALP).

South America and portions of West Africa missed the eclipse completely as it happened in the early morning.





Gallery
Asia

Times for Australia
The eclipse occurred on Saturday evening in Australia. Eastern Daylight Saving Time: (+11:00 UTC)
 * Penumbral Eclipse Begins: 22:33:32 EDST
 * Partial Eclipse Begins: 23:45:42 EDST
 * Total Eclipse Begins: 01:06:16 EDST
 * Greatest Eclipse: 01:31:49 EDST
 * Total Eclipse Ends: 01:57:24 EDST
 * Partial Eclipse Ends: 03:17:58 EDST
 * Penumbral Eclipse Ends: 04:30:00 EDST

Times for India
The eclipse was visible from India in the evening, given in India Standard Time (UTC+5:30):
 * Penumbral eclipse begins (P1): 17:04 IST
 * Partial eclipse begins (U1): 18:16 IST
 * Total eclipse begins (U2): 19:36 IST
 * Mid-eclipse: 20:02 IST
 * Total eclipse ends (U3): 20:27 IST
 * Partial eclipse ends (U4): 21:48 IST
 * Penumbral eclipse ends (P4): 23:00 IST

Times for North America
The eclipse was visible on Saturday morning before sunrise over North America. For most location the moon set before full lunar eclipse. Only Alaska and northernmost Canada will be able to witness the entire event.

Eclipses of 2011

 * A partial solar eclipse on 4 January.
 * A partial solar eclipse on 1 June.
 * A total lunar eclipse on 15 June.
 * A partial solar eclipse on 1 July.
 * A partial solar eclipse on 25 November.
 * A total lunar eclipse on 10 December.

It was preceded by the partial solar eclipse of November 25, 2011.

Half-Saros cycle
A lunar eclipse will be preceded and followed by solar eclipses by 9 years and 5.5 days (a half saros). This lunar eclipse is related to two total solar eclipses of Solar Saros 142.

Lunar year (354 days)
This eclipse is the one of four lunar eclipses in a short-lived series. The lunar year series repeats after 12 lunations or 354 days (shifting back about 10 days in sequential years). Because of the date shift, the Earth's shadow will be about 11 degrees west in sequential events.