A total

lunar eclipse A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow. Such alignment occurs during an eclipse season, approximately every six months, during the full moon phase, when the Moon's orbital plane is closest to the plane of the Eart ...

took place on Thursday, December 30, 1982, the last of three total lunar eclipses in 1982. A shallow total eclipse saw the Moon in relative darkness for 1 hour, 2.8 seconds. The Moon was 18% of its diameter into the Earth's umbral shadow, and should have been significantly darkened. The partial eclipse lasted for 3 hours, 15 minutes and 55.2 seconds in total. Occurring only 0.4 days before perigee (Perigee on Thursday, December 30, 1982 at 10:03 p.m. UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was 6.3% larger than average. The Moon was only 357,154 km (221,925 mi) from the Earth, making it a Super Full Moon. This was a

supermoon A supermoon is a full moon or a new moon that nearly coincides with perigee—the closest that the Moon comes to the Earth in its elliptic orbit—resulting in a slightly larger-than-usual apparent size of the lunar disk as viewed from Earth. ...

since

perigee An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion. General description There are two apsides in any ell ...

was on the same day. It was also a

blue moon A blue moon is an additional full moon that appears in a subdivision of a year: the third of four full moons in a season. The phrase in modern usage has nothing to do with the actual color of the Moon, although a visually blue Moon (the Moon a ...

, the second full moon of December for the

eastern hemisphere The Eastern Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth which is east of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and west of the antimeridian (which crosses the Pacific Ocean and relatively little land from pole to po ...

where the previous full moon was on December 1. Since total lunar eclipses are also known as blood moons, this combination (which would not recur until January 31, 2018) is known as a ''super blue blood moon''.

Visibility

It was completely visible over eastern Asia, Australia, Pacific and North America, seen rising over Asia and Australia and setting over South Pacific Ocean and North America. Lunar eclipse from moon-1982Dec30

Related eclipses

Eclipses in 1982

* A total lunar eclipse on January 9. * A partial solar eclipse on January 25. * A partial solar eclipse on June 21. * A total lunar eclipse on July 6. * A partial solar eclipse on July 20. * A partial solar eclipse on December 15. * A total lunar eclipse on December 30. There are seven eclipses in 1982, the maximum possible, including 4 partial solar eclipses: January 25,

July 20 Events Pre-1600 * 70 – Siege of Jerusalem: Titus, son of emperor Vespasian, storms the Fortress of Antonia north of the Temple Mount. The Roman army is drawn into street fights with the Zealots. * 792 – Kardam of Bulgaria defea ...

June 21 Events Pre-1600 * 533 – A Byzantine expeditionary fleet under Belisarius sails from Constantinople to attack the Vandals in Africa, via Greece and Sicily (approximate date). *1307 – Külüg Khan is enthroned as Khagan of the Mon ...

, and

December 15 Events Pre-1600 * 533 – Vandalic War: Byzantine general Belisarius defeats the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, at the Battle of Tricamarum. * 687 – Pope Sergius I is elected as a compromise between antipopes Paschal and Theod ...

Lunar year series

Tritos series

* Preceded: Lunar eclipse of March 13, 1979 * Followed: Lunar eclipse of January 9, 2001

Tzolkinex

* Preceded: Lunar eclipse of November 18, 1975 * Followed: Lunar eclipse of February 9, 1990

Half-Saros cycle

A lunar eclipse will be preceded and followed by solar eclipses by 9 years and 5.5 days (a half saros).Mathematical Astronomy Morsels, Jean Meeus, p.110, Chapter 18, ''The half-saros'' This lunar eclipse is related to two annular solar eclipses of Solar Saros 141.

Notes

External links

* 1982-12 1982 in science December 1982 events {{lunar-eclipse-stub