Total lunar eclipse, 21 December 2011

A lunar eclipse at midsummer, on the shortest night of the year, is pretty awesome.  It also doesn't leave a lot of darkness to view the eclipse!  Here in Christchurch the moon rose already in total eclipse, and wasn't visible for some time as there was cloud low in the sky.  But it was worth waiting for, a spectacular pale pink disk which became rusty red as it rose higher in the darkening sky.  And even as sunlight crept across the moon's surface and clouds partly obscured the moon from view, it was still a freakish and beautiful sight.