From: roelle@uars_mag.jhuapl.edu (Curtis Roelle)
Subject: 82 v. 92:  Which Eclipse Was Darker?  Your Answers.
Summary: sci.astro readers comment on darkness of this month's total lunar eclip
Keywords: "lunar eclipse", moon
Organization: Johns Hopkins University
Date: 21 Dec 92 17:52:13 GMT

In an earlier posting I requested comments from observers who had
viewed two total lunar eclipses that occurred on December 9, 1992, and
December 30, 1982, nearly 10 years earlier.  The purpose was to
conduct an informal poll to answer the question, "Which was darker?
The December 1982 or the December 1992 eclipse?"

Although only a handful of people replied, the responses were mixed.
Still, the majority of those responding, who had personally viewed
both eclipses, considered the December 1982 eclipse to be the darker
of the two.

The following table shows for each responding observer which of the
two total lunar eclipses was perceived to be darker, and the
geographical location (by state) from where each observation was made,
if any:

			..DARKER ?..		OBS LOCATION
	OBSERVER	1982	1992		1982	1992
	--------	----	----		----	----
	Roelle		X			MD	MD
	Santoro					--	PA
	Kratz		X			MD	VA
	Montbello				TX	--
	Gawne			X		TX	VA
	Hathaway	X			IL	MD?

Santoro did not view the December, 1982 eclipse; however he recalls
the 1992 eclipse as the darkest he has seen in 30 years, including
eclipses in the 1960's.  Observer Kratz on the other hand ranks the
1992 eclipse as the third darkest lunar eclipse of the last 30 years.
According to Kratz both the 1982 and 1963 eclipses were darker than
the 1992 eclipse.

Montbello observed the 1982 eclipse, but not the 1992 eclipse, which
was not visible in Hawaii.  Still, his comments concerning the 1982
eclipse have been included below.

I asked the same question, regarding darkness of the 1982 and 1992
eclipses, at a star party this past Friday.  Four of us had viewed
both eclipses.  The vote was split with two for 1982 and two for 1992
being darker.  During the discussion one person canged their vote,
leaving it three in favor of 1982 as being the darker eclipse.

Here is what each observer said...

(1) My own comments were...

>Although I only saw it near 2nd and 3rd contact, the moon remained
>visible to the naked eye as a brownish-grey, and quite faint.  But I
>seem to remember that the eclipse 10 years ago, on 30 December 1982
>was even darker yet.  That eclipse came several months after the
>eruption of Mexico's El Chichon volcano.  After totality in 1982 I
>could *not* see the moon with the naked eye and also found it impossible
>to focus a camera [with frosted screen] connected to on a 6-inch 
>Newtonian.

(2) Gerry Santoro - CAC/PSU <GMS@psuvm.psu.edu> writes:

>After a 2-month cloudy spell the sky miraculously cleared this afternoon
>over central PA in time for the lunar eclipse.  In fact, as I watch out
>my window the moon is just coming out of the darkest eclipse I have seen
>in 30 years of watching.  To the naked eye it darn near completely
>disappeared.

>I went back to my log notebook for 1982.  I have some notes about the
>eclipse, mainly that it happened real early in the morning.  Unfortunately
>that isd all that I have on it -- other than a note that I missed it
>entirely.  Guess I should have noted that of the lunar eclipses I
>successfully observed since the early '60s, this was the darkest.

>I observed the 1992 eclipse from about 10 miles southwest of State College,
>Pennsylvania.  That puts me in the Seven Mountains range at approximate
>West Long 79  and approx North Lat 41.  I would give transparancy a 3
>on a 1-4 scale (where 4 is best).

>In 10x50 binoculars it was a dusky grey-black at mid eclipse and was
>only barely visible at 40x in a 2.4" refractor.   My 8" F6 Newtonian
>showed it as a beautiful faint grey, with only the slightest hint of
>deep brown along the southern edge.

(3) From: kratz@aquila.larc.nasa.gov (Dave Kratz)

> To answer your posted question about the darkness of the 12/82
>eclipse versus the 12/92 eclipse: the 12/82 eclipse was significantly
>darker.  The 12/92 eclipse was a very dull, dark red and visible to
>the unaided eye; however, the 12/92 eclipse was virtually colorless
>and almost invisible during totality.  [...]Oh well, I'll put this
>eclipse down as a dark one, but no where near as dark as 12/82 or the
>one in 1963 (don't remember the month but I do remember watching the
>eclipse).  As for bright eclipses, refer to 4/68---what a beautiful
>eclipse!!!  In mid-totality the moon was still fairly bright, and a
>nice orange color.  I want to see another one like that!

(4)  From: joe@montebello.soest.hawaii.edu (Joe Dellinger)

>	I couldn't see the 1992 eclipse --- it happened during the daytime
>here. However I saw the 1982 eclipse from Texas, where it happened very
>high in the sky. It never completely disappeared to the naked eye. At
>the darkest the moon was an ill-defined grey smudge in the sky to my
>eyes.

(5) From: Bill Gawne <GAWNE@stsci.edu>

>...I saw the Dec 82 eclipse from an observatory located about
>50 miles north of Dallas TX and I saw this one from a rest stop
>on I-95 just south of Dale City Va, so it wasn't exactly a case of
>similar states.  Still, I thought this was darker.

(6) From:  hathaway@stsci.edu (William Hathaway)

>I saw the '82 eclipse from Illinois where the moon was well up in a dark 
>sky during totality.  Just on my recollection, I think the '82 one was 
>slightly darker than the '92 one.  I only lost naked-eye sight of the 
>'92 one for a few minutes, while the '82 one was virtually gone for 
>many minutes.  

Curt Roelle
roelle@sigi.jhuapl.edu
Newsgroups: sci.astro,sci.optics